Battle of the titans: Elvis vs Elvis at the 1078

Originally published Feb. 22, 2007 in The Buzz

Music lovers crowded 1078 Gallery in downtown Chico Friday in hopes of reuniting their lost love of the Elvises, as 17 Chico bands covered songs by Elvis Presley and Elvis Costello.

The Zombats kicked off the night with Presley's "Trouble." With lyrics like, "If you're looking for trouble, you came to the right place," it was the perfect way to start the gruesome battle. The Zombats' moody sound seemed to in fact, bring Presley back from the dead.

Following The Zombats' one-song argument in defense of Presley, a red record player was turned on to spin both Presley and Costello records.

The faint volume and hiss of the record player gave an eerie feeling of lost love. It was as if the room transcended everyone decades into the past.

Up next was Rev. Junkyard Moondog with his rebuttal in defense of Costello. Before playing "Pump It Up," Moondog proclaimed he was going to prove that while "real rock comes from the heart, real heart comes from the rock."

He took the rocks suspended form his neck, tied with strings, and literally rocked out, inspiring the first crowd sing-along of the night.

Chico State University student Martin Svec cited Moondog as his favorite performance of the night.

Although Svec attended the show in support of Costello, the Gorgeous Armada's Presley performance also ranked high in his book, he said.

The Gorgeous Armada took the stage and welcomed everyone to "the memorial," calling its performance an interpretive dance.

The band gathered around one microphone and hummed "Fools Rush In (Where Angels Fear to Tread)."

Band member Handsome Gorgeous, dressed in boxers and a bathrobe, placed a chair, labeled "toilet," in front of the stage. He took a drink out of a bottle in hand and choked down some pills. As legend says, he proceeded to die on the toilet.

The audience cheered in disbelief.

every move of the dance was like watching a suspense movie. You knew what was going to happen next, but you did not believe it would actually happen.

The Gorgeous Armada proved that a lot can be said without even saying a word.

On the other hand, words can get a point across as well. The Shankers made it clear whose side they were on.

"I think Mr. Costello sucks," said lead singer Johnny Shanker.

The Shankers' fast-paced renditions of Presley's "That's All Right" and "Heartbreak Hotel" got the audience on its feet and asking for more.

Following with the same opening song, Gruk gave Presley's' "That's All Right" and "Jailhouse Rock" a faster-paced punk spin.

Lead singer Rachel Loveless began each song with melodic vocals, but quickly changed the pace with aggressive screaming, switching back and forth.

While Gruk made each Presley song its own, it was not hard to choose between Presley and Costello, said drummer Sean Cummins.

"Presley is slight more punk rock," he said.

To prepare for the performance, the band listened to original songs repeatedly and searched for guitar tabs on the Internet, Cummins said. While they wanted to play the songs as close to the original, the had fun practicing them at different speeds.

Gruk's aggressive performance made a solid case for Presley, but by the end of the night Costello won 9 to 8. However, that is based on the number of bands who chose a side.

No winner was officially announced.

The only clear winners where 1078 Gallery and the Suburban American Tract Home compilation, which raised $600 from the door.

The night proved that Chico has respect for rock's forefathers and talent of eclectic styles of music. Each band brought its own style to the table, but it would have been nice to see no repeated songs.

While Jessica O'Donnell attended the show to support Costello, she would have liked to seen a band perform Presley's "Blue Suede Shoes," she said.

O'Donnell and others will just have to wait for the next time Presley and Costello cross paths. Judging by the night's close race, a rematch might come sooner than later.

Chico’s Secret Stolen: Rock ‘n’ Roll, a working van fuel DIY tours

Originally published Feb. 01, 2007 in The Buzz.

While most people spent their winter vacation sleeping in, four young Chico musicians drove across California on a “do it yourself” tour.

Relying on networking skills over the Internet, The Secret Stolen booked shows in more than 10 California cities for a three-week tour in January. The band kicked off the tour January 2 in Chico and embarked on a search for ears willing to listen to their high-energy, mind-bending brand of alternative rock.

Besides, the members being young, ages range from 20 to 25, the band itself is also fairly young.

Childhood friends, Billy DiBono (drums), John Wold (bass, vocals), and brothers Cameron Ford (guitar, vocals) and Nolan Ford (guitar) played in bands throughout high school, but it wasn’t until the summer of 2005 that The Secret Stolen was born, DiBono said.

Previous to that summer, Cameron Ford was attending college in Santa Barbara, but kept in contact with DiBono, he said. Cameron Ford sent DiBono songs he had been working on while in Santa Barbara. When Cameron Ford made a visit to Chico for the summer, the idea of starting a new band sparked.

As soon as they heard about the idea, Nolan Ford and Wold became interested in joining the band. The Secret Stolen was born June 2005 and Cameron Ford did not return to Santa Barbara.

Cameron Ford joined DiBono at Chico State University and the Chico workforce with Nolan Ford and Wold. They all soon found out how difficult it is to play in a band while juggling school and work.

Being tied down to school and work makes it hard for a band to leave town for a tour. That is why The Secret Stolen has taken advantage of semester breaks and uses them for touring.

Their January tour marked their third touring adventure. Instead of relying on a booking agent, the band researched venues and booked the tour.

For some shows they used contacts at the same venues they played on their last tour, DiBono said. Other shows were booked through networking done by DiBono and Nolan Ford on www.myspace.com.

While the Internet is helpful for networking, the band still encountered some obstacles while planning the tour, DiBono said. Planning a convenient route was not an option. Relying on their van for full support, the band had to take any shows that came up, regardless if they required long drives in between dates. Luckily, their van, named Jean-Claude Band Van by friend Kiel Kennedy, had no problems.

The group searched for bands in other cities that play music similar to The Secret Stolen and asked if they could play a show with them, said Cameron Ford. Playing a show with a band that already has a following in a city gives The Secret Stolen security that they will not be playing to an empty venue.

“Hopefully, we can strike a nerve with their fans,” he said.

Yet, all shows on the tour did not attract large audiences, DiBono said. The band played a few shows that had a 21-age restriction. Those shows were not nearly as fun or successful as shows that had no age restriction.

Other shows did not happen at all, DiBono said. The band had booked two shows in San Diego, but both were cancelled due to other bands on the bill breaking up. Canceled shows, however, did not halt the tour. As soon as the band found out about the canceled San Diego shows, they got back on the Internet and acquired a show in Long Beach.

Proving that everything happens for a reason, the band’s most memorable show was also unplanned, said Cameron Ford. The band had yet to book a show for Jan. 19, but while on the road Cameron Ford was able to book a show in Reno. However, the band had a show in Monterey Jan. 18 and another in Morgan Hill Jan. 20.

After deciding that the drive to Reno would have been too strenuous, the band was able to find a show in Turlock, Cameron Ford said. The show was all-ages, but the band was not expecting much.

“There’s nothing in Turlock,” he said.

To the band’s surprise, more than 100 people attended the show.

“It was the first time on the tour we played for genuine people who cared about our music,” Cameron Ford said.

Meeting genuine people makes all the hard work worthwhile, he said. The benefit of doing a DIY tour is being able to improve and have people take notice. Eventually, someone in a higher position will see the band’s constant tour dates and will want to help out the band.

The tour dates keep coming for The Secret Stolen, he said. The band is ready to leave California and tour more days out of the year.

Learning from stressful experiences, the band is now able to tour anytime of the year, Cameron Ford said. He and DiBono are now solely taking online classes at Chico State University.

After a short break in Chico, the band will leave in March for their first tour of the Northwest, hitting cities like Portland and Seattle, DiBono said. They hope to be well received in the Northwest and not encounter the same obstacles as before.

Either way, they will enjoy the creativity that new surroundings bring.

“Tour is trial and error,” DiBono said.