News & Insights by Stoney
Last Month was a very triumphant month for us here at Lokal Loudness as well as the Lokal Scene in general. Some very strong shows were put on including several at the DAV, Martinez Community Center, The Haven, Magoo's, Red Lion, etc. What is most exciting is the amount of responses to our March poll regarding the area music media. I've read through several hundred responses and have also received mail regarding this subject. Look in our April poll section for results as well as comments and new questions. We received a lot of support in this poll. We want to thank all of you. Your response keeps us motivated to improve our coverage of the lokal scene. One such creative letter was received from a student at Augusta State University via personal e-mail and reads:

"Lokal Loudness is the only place where the voice of the people can finally be heard, maybe now things can change in this city. To the papers, & the radio stations, hear the voice of them that support you, "Give the people what they want!" We want the venues where we can see Lokal bands, we want radio trhat supports lokal bands, we want a scene of lokal music in this town, we want lokal music, & we want it NOW!"

In several of our responses we were asked to assist other lokal media in lokal music coverage. We will be sending results of our poll, including comments and personal e-mails to all lokal media. What they then do with the "Voice of the People" is up to them.

This month we have xklusive interviews with Augusta music vets

IMPULSE RIDE

Classic Country Rockers
SUPERCHIEF

As well as SECONDHAND SOUL and weekly surprises!

A.J's will be presenting the 1st Annual Classic Rock & Blues Festival During Master Week. Scheduled acts so far Include TOMMY HANGOVER & DR. FREEBAND & THE VELLOTONES.

Speaking of TOMMY HANGOVER, the Rocking quartet are on the lookout for a new bassist to fill the void soon to be left by departing Keith Blanchard who is returning to Ohio. Keith will continue to play until his estimated departure in June.

Cable channel 66 has been broadcasting a show featuring lokal bands on thursday nite @ 11:00. Call your cable supplier for more details.

RUMOR TUMOR: Is 96X getting a new Lokal music show? Word out on the street is that many listeners are looking for 96X to have a newer, listener friendly lokal music show now that Laurie Locklier & Homegrown are at 95 Rock. Keep your ears on!

Stoney looks into a SECONDHAND SOUL. This issue we get to talk to lokal Christian heavies SECONDHAND SOUL. This band out of West Augusta, featuring Dwayne Jay on vocals, Wesley Jay on bass, Mike Leaptrott on guitar and David Straton on drums, are currently working on their follow-up to their self-titled debut. The band were nice to enough to answer a few questions with some very intelligent answers.

LL-So how have things been going since the CD release party?
ML-We are really bustin out on a more regional and national level. We have trips planned for this spring and summer from Miami, Fla. to Washington, DC to as far west as Colorado. We also have a new CD that will be released near the end of April.

LL-You are a part of a growing Augusta Christian scene. Do you consider this movement to be sincere and positive to the youth involved?
ML-I'm can't really speak for other people. I can only speak for what we are seeing personally and that is that people are responding very well to our music and our very dynamic stage show. In addition to that we are helping people see a different side of Christianity. Not the stuffy boring "don't do this" stereotype that is portrayed in the media. Instead, people hear our music and get blown away by our concerts and then they meet us and realize that we are just doing what we feel is natural to us as Christians. It's refreshing for people to find out that being a Christian has nothing to do with changing the styles of music you listen to or the clothes you wear. That simple fact alon can be more effective than all the preaching in the world.

LL-Did you come together first as musician's or as Christian's?
ML-As musicians. We knew from the start that we would always stay true to our values, but the reason we initially came together was for the purpose of making music.

LL-A lot of people are curious about what it means to be in a Christian band. Can you explain it to them?
ML-I have always written music about the things that are most important to me. In high school the songs I wrote were about sex and drugs. The way I write hasn't changed one bit, except now the important things in my life have changed and that finds it's way into my songs. We play in a variety of situations. Sometimes it's in a church and other times it's in a bar just like any other band. We have people at both ends of the spectrum that find us hard to swallow, but that's fine with me because I'm just writing songs about what I feel. Isn't that what every musician strives to do? We never change our message, but we do change the presentation based on where we are. You can't debate deep theological principles in a bar with a guy on his fourth shot of tequilla. You're best bet is to lead him by example and hope that he sees something different about you and gives you an opportunity to offer some guidance. I respect secular musicians that are true to their feelings. I may disagree with them, but at least they are giving us honest music from their heart. I'm more concerned about what's in their hearts than what's coming out in their lyrics. That's our main objective as Christians, to be concerned about what's in a person's heart as opposed to pushing our views onto them.

LL-What do you say to those people who consider CCM a way of sharing the word that is very non-Christian-like?
ML-There is no wrong way to share the word just more or less successful ways. Anything you do to convey your beliefs to someone should be commended. As you experience more success with certain methods you naturally want to spend more time using the more successful techniques. Our music seems to get our thoughts accross to people that need to hear it and as long as we get good responses we will continue to do it. IF someone has a more successful approach to reach these same people they by all means they should teach us instead of just knocking down our attempt to do what we know is working.

LL-Being young, there are a lot of pressures, whether it be to succeed, fit in, etc. What are some of the pressures you deal with as a band?
ML-Just trying to keep everybody on the same page and not loosing focus. Any band can tell you that there are very few opportunities out there for bands. Weather you're just starting out or you're working on you 3rd CD, it takes alot of work to keep the band moving. There is no school for being a band. You have to go out and work hard and learn as you go.

LL-Would you say your musical influences are Christian or more mainstream?
ML-Both, but mostly mainstream music. Christian music has traditionally lagged a few years behind. I think that is gradually changing.

LL-Any off-the-wall gigs coming up?
ML-We are playing in a coffe house in Greenville next month. That should be interesting since we are known for being and extremely loud band. You can ask some of our fans (if they can hear you that is).

LL-Thank you for your time. Any final words for our readers?
ML-Support your local bands! There are more and more opportunities to see good bands around Augusta and we should all check them out even if we are unsure of what we might find. The coolest music scenes in the History of the world (like San Franciso in the 60's or London in the 80's or Seattle in the 90's) happened because people were interested in supporting something new and respected people for making bold musical statements.

Pow Wow With the Superchief!

For those lokal fans of classic country rock style music al Rolling Stones, SUPERCHIEF is just the band for you. Having created a loyal following during the past year, th eband have become popular regulars and areas places like the Red Lion, the Highlander, Soul Bar & Nacho Mamas. As part of a current area rock & roll revival, we spoke briefly to bassist Dave Nickel.

LL-How was SUPERCHIEF created?
DN-Superchief got started playing open mic night at the red lion. Randy was always a bass man but had decided to play guitar. I was used to playing just guitar but decided to give the bass a try. We've been around for about a year and a half now and have grown from downright sucking, playing the same ten songs to being able to hold our own with a song list fifty strong, including close to twenty originals.

LL-Lately you've been recording with David Bradberry, how is that project going?
DN-The Bradberry thing is working out great. He's really helping us with our sound. We hope to have a release by mid- april. It will consist of ten original chief tunes featuring a few "surprise guests" .Brian just got a lap steel guitar, so we're trying to fuse the new sound on the record and in the live shows.

LL-Who are some of your favorite lokal acts?
DN-Some of our favorite local bands are: Jackson, Figure Four, deathstar, Tommy Hangover, and Gearbox. Augusta has a lot of really talented musicians who deserve to be heard, and everyone should support one another.

LL-So what is the future for SUPERCHIEF?
DN-March is turning out to be a busy month for the Chief. St. Pattys' at Nachos', Soul Bar on the 18th, the inevitible all night Highlander show the 26th, and the Red Lion on the 31st. We're looking forward to announcing a date in April with Bloodkin at the Georgia Theatre in Athens.

Stoney takes an Impulse Ride.

Most people in Augusta have heard of the band IMPULSE RIDE, whether it be through a friend, live music event, radio, whatever. The point is that IMPULSE RIDE continues to be one of the most enduring, endearing, hard working bands ever to come from the Garden City. I had the opportunity to ask lead vocalist Ruskin Yeargain some in depth questions on the past, present and future of IMPULSE RIDE. Before we get started though, Rus sent us a statement, not for Lokal Loudness, but for you, the reader. Check it.

On behalf of Bill, Cam, Brannon & myself, we'd like to thank those of you who voted for Corn Dog Money as "CD of the Year" in the online polls. We genuinely appreciate all the support you and Augusta have given us in these past few years. We also want to thank Stoney and Lokal Loudness for their dedication in keeping us informed with the lokal music scene and exposing new lokal talent. By supporting lokal talent and Lokal Loudness, we can make sure that Augusta will continue to have a thriving music scene.
Thanks, Ruskin (Impulse Ride)

LL-So how have things been going since the re-release of "Corn Dog Money"?
IR-Pretty well. We flew up to MA and CT in October to do a few in-store performances. J-Bird has been pretty good about getting CDM into stores throughout the country and getting IR music played on radio as well. The fact that we have national distribution has opened a lot of doors for us.

LL-Heard "On the Edge" on Homegrown. It's a great track. When/where was that recorded?
IR-We recorded that back in December of 97 at The Washateria. The Washateria is Jamie Hoover's studio in Clover, SC. He produced this track for us. It was fun to work with him again. This song can be found on the new Haunted Pillar compilation "Grand Slam Jam."

LL-When will we see the next new batch of IMPULSE RIDE tunes?
IR-We are beginning pre-production now. If you come out to see us at Joe's or the Red Lion, you can get a sample of them live. We'd like to have something new by the end of the year.

LL-Also love the new setup at the website. What made you guys decide to redo it?
IR-I finally learned how to create animations. We figured if I'm gonna do new animations we might as well do new everything. We like the new set up. I've still got to work out a few kinks, but...

LL-It's definitely one of the coolest sites lokally, have you seen many of the other lokal sites? What do you think of them?
IR-Thanks. Well, I'm a graphic designer by trade, so I have a little advantage. I've seen a few of them, but I'm really the wrong person to ask because I'm hyper critical. However, as long as a website downloads fast, is easy to navigate and is entertaining or informative it will serve it's purpose.

LL-A few months back you played as part of the THIRD EYE BLIND show and now will be appearing as part of the GOO GOO DOLLS show. Do you feel being chosen is a testament to where IMPULSE RIDE fits in the lokal scene?
IR-Definitely. We've stuck it out where many have come and gone. But it wasn't easy. It never was. I remember times when we'd play to 600 or 700 people and then a few years later we'd be lucky to get a few dozen. Now, we're rebuilding that fan base. And it's nice to see a lot of those same people who were there since the beginning. If it weren't for our lokal fans we would not be where we are today. Now the band is finally in a position to make a move into the national level. All four of us are committed to a common goal and we are finally singing from the same page.

LL-Rus, will you be working in the studio with any other bands like Gearbox in the future?
IR-Unfortunately "no." Although I really enjoyed working, with Gearbox, The Brotherhood and rapper Greg Williams, I just don't have the time anymore to do that kind of thing. However, I'd really like to do it again in the future.

LL-Does working with other acts help you charge up & get ready for IMPULSE RIDE business?
IR-Yeah, it does. Everytime I go out and hear new music it encourages me to pick up the guitar and write music, too.

LL-Lokal Loudness readers wanna know when you're gonna headline a Lokal Loudness show?
IR-Let's get together and throw some dates around.

LL-Who would you want to play with?
IR-I really don't know. There's a lot of good lokal bands out there.

LL-What's in your CD player right now?
IR-You'll appreciate this...I think it's KISS's "Psycho Circus."

LL-Final comments?
IR-Rock on Lokal Loudness!