PINKKU MOVES ON
Pinkku plays their last show Friday, November 12 at Larimer. No, the band’s not breaking up; in January they’ll be moving on, going to the city by the bay in search of musical riches. “This Friday will be a good time. It’s all family,” says Zimmerman, singer and keyboardist for the group. “I spend more time with Jeff than I do with anyone else on the planet. And he still makes me laugh like hell…sometimes musical connections are so intimate, its bigger than sex.” Pinkku is in the midst of recording some demos for labels, and Zimmerman himself is, “recording alone to send songs to far away friends as a collaboration kind of thing. One more thing- I just want to say – thanks to everyone. Thanks for including me and Pinkku in your LIVES. It means everything to me. Who knows what happens next.”
RIP GAMITS: 1995-2004
The Gamits have officially called it quits. Even after releasing a stellar album earlier this year, Chris Fogal just felt that as the only original member left in the band, it was time to move on. The musicians that have rolled through their doors are: Matt Vanleuven ( bass mostly and drums at one point ) Matt Martinez ( bass ) Forrest Bartosh ( drums ) Scott Weigel ( bass ) Luke Mathers (bass ) Brian Pentagram (drums ) Scott Swarers ( bass ) and Jason Walker ( drums ).
“I would like to thank every one of you for being in the band even if it was just for a couple weeks or a couple years,” says Chris. “I will hold back from thanking anyone specifically except band members because if I thank one person I have to thank about 500.” He does make one exception in thanking Virgil Dickerson of Suburban Home Records. “…he was always been my right hand man and has supported the Gamits through thick and thin.”
Although Chris never believed the Gamits were ever the punkest band in the world, they were, “extremely DIY when it came to our music. It was written, produced, and recorded by us in the studio that we built from scratch,” the studio being 8 Houses Down in Denver. “For all of this I am very proud as well. Who knows what could have happened to the Gamits if we would have taken a different approach.”
After spending over 10 years working the band in every area, Chris feels he needs to speak up about demise of the DIY ethic and the focus on the music itself. “I don’t want to turn this into a whole speech about the current state of punk rock, but let’s just say that nobody in this band ever sat around and talked about how we were going to make it big or sign to a major label. It seems like that’s all anybody cares about anymore. Kids these days sometimes look down on you if you aren’t on a major label. They think you must suck or something. This is very backwards and it’s in a scene like this that bands like ours get eaten up. Not only that, but lots of good bands who don’t know any better sign to a major and they get screwed. Music in general suffers.”
He points out that the state of this scene isn’t related to why he will put the Gamits in past, Chris just feels that the music scene as a whole is very redundant and more corporate than he ever thought was possible. “I hope that it turns around soon. It has to.”
Chris and the others in the bands will continue to keep the rock rolling, playing in other bands and working other projects. Antidote can be purchased from Suburban Home Records at www.suburbanhomerecords.com or at your local independent record retailer.
IN OTHER NEWS
The Witching Hour is working on both a DVD project and their new CD, After the Haunting Silence, which is in production with over half of the recording completed. The DVD will include both live and studio video clips, which will feature “1st Snow of Winter”, “Sealed with a Kiss”, “I Am Corruption”, “Roses”, and “Judgment Day.” They also have a page on MySpace.com at www.myspace.com/thewitchinghour.com.
The Skivies have launched a new, flashy website, complete with Sightings, Sounds, and Snapshots “through virtual cyber-sound downloading.” They’ll be playing with Tintin at New Ancient Astronauts’s CD Release Party this Thursday, November 18 at the BlueBird, where you just may discover their true kinetic abnormalities. The following night they play Atzlan Theater the next night, Friday November 19, with Wychkraft, Cymetre, Blind Nation, Heinous Beating. Check out their new cyber spot at www.theskivies.com.
Buzz Band Stories this week:
— Jones Soda Launched MyJones Online Music Community
— Rock Takes Over Cristalbols
Do you have some news about your music or your band that you would like everyone to know about? Email us at bands@kaffeinebuzz.com!!
