The Clocks
Mike Metoff - Vocals, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Bass
Dave Deluca - Guitar, Vocals
George Cabaniss - Guitar
Chas Smith - Keyboards
Arnie Kline - Drums
Tich Erod - Bass
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The Slapstick Miracle:
The Clocks were a very unique band, in that before every band practice we would play tennis on a next door court until it got dark... then go inside and run through the set.
That has nothing to do with this story.
There always seemed to be chics hanging out at practice, which always made practice a little more fun, but also has nothing to do with this story.
But one night was most special. We were sitting in the kitchen of Arnie's house where we practiced out in Painsville. There was a potted plant sitting on the window ledge right above where Dave, goofing around with Titch I think, went slamming into the wall under the window and slid down the wall so he was now sitting on the floor... JUST as the potted plant came off its perch, falling like a smart bomb square on the top of Dave's head, cracking the pot and leaving poor Lonesome Cowboy Dave sitting there with soil covering his face and a busted up plant perched perfectly on top of his head.
That moment was forever then known as the Slapstick Miracle... and was maybe the reason for all that on-stage psychobabble.
Chas Smith
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The Clocks struck first in late 1979 following the breakup of three bands that were part of Cleveland's "second wave" of underground rockers.
Ex-members of the Pagans, Chronics, and Bernie & the Invisibles got together in an attic studio in Ohio City to record what was to be a one off single. The A-side, inspired by sci-fi author Harlan Ellison, was entitled "Ticktockman" hence the band's name.
A chemistry developed between the participants, after all, they shared a mutual fondness for chemicals, and a working band was soon formed. Soundwise, they blended several vintage musical forms that had been currently revived via the new wave. Rockabilly, power pop, surf, psychedelia, R&B, or ska, the Clocks didn't miss a beat.
When the single came out the following May, Rock Scene, a national supermarket rock tabloid, did a spread on the band that featured a ½ page photo accompanied by a positive review wriiten by "Doc Rock" (a.k.a. Lenny Kaye of the Patti Smith Group) who compared them to who else, the Chocolate Watchband!
Onstage, the Clocks mixed sci fi themed originals and obscure cover songs with plenty of psychobabble stage banter that both intrigued and baffled their audiences. The Clocks played out A LOT! They were a weekend house band at two flats clubs, Tucky's and the Warehouse, a regular at the Mistake, and played countless one-nighters, often with the Wild Giraffes, at suburban nightspots throughout Northeast Ohio.
Some of their more memorable gigs include their shows at the old Agora ballroom, the rock and roll marathon, an opening slot for Iggy Pop, the disasterous "Pride of Cleveland" night, and the near disasterous re-opening of the newly renovated Pop Shop (it got trashed).
They also headlined the first ever Studio A Rama at CWRU's Mather Courtyard and once found themselves in a most unlikely scenario, playing in front of AC/DC at an after concert bash in Erie Pa.
Their over ambitious gigging schedule and a misguided foray into a professional recording studio left the band creatively and financially bankrupt by the end of 1981.
For the Clocks it was evident, there time was up (Sorry). A posthumous LP was released in 1984 entitled "Wake me when it's over" under the name Radio Alarm Clocks (the Clocks name had since been copyrighted). The following year, three of the members formed a spin off group called Venus Envy.
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Back in 1981,The Clocks were my favorite local band. They played at a place called The Warehouse, down,next to the Pirates Cove.
I didn't know the names of the guys in the band, but, knew the value of a dollar. We would "party" at the "crib" on E. 81st St.; get primed; plenty of free parking in the flats, back in those days. Walk Right In, Sit Right Down. Baby! Let your mind go wild.
I very much appreciated their rhythm and their humor, among other things; their sense of harmony, and candor.
That was about the time I was sent UP THE RIVER to THE BIG HOUSE in Mansfield, as a result of a misspent youth.
When I returned to Riverside, around 1984, I did not recognize the place! They had turned it into a bad scene from ANIMAL HOUSE.
Lenny Hoffman
The Wombats
Victor Halm - Vocal (lead), Guitar
Johnny Fetish (John Zinrich) - Guitar, Vocals
Tim Ratley - Bass
Tom Edwards - Drums
Mike Speck (Bagwhan) - Drums
Mark Lesniok - Bass
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Heroes of the modern garage revival, the Wombats were born sometime in the late 70s, somewhere in the leafy lanes of Maple Heights, Ohio.
Teenage guitar strangler John Zinrich, a.k.a. Johnny Fettish (so called because he had a thing for biting women's knees under tables, hence "John Knee Fetish"), had previously lived out the punk ideal by dropping out of high school at age 15 to join Public Enemy, noted in Cle 3.0 for doing "the fastest version ever attempted of 'I Wanna Be Your Dog'."
Striving for a poppier sound, Fettish and his suburban neighbor Vic Halm penned a series of power-punk pop gems and entered the first national "Battle of the Garages" competition run by Bomp/Voxx honcho Greg Shaw. The 'Bats contributed a track, "The Reason Why" to the first "Battle" compilation and played on the national "Battle" tour in 1981.
Positive public reaction won them a recording contract, and between 1981 and 1984 the 'Bats released two singles and an album, "Zontar Must Die!" on Bomp/Voxx. They also played various notable East Coast and local venues, including the first WRUW Studio Arama show and the opening night of the Lakefront (which displayed "Wombats" on its curb sign for several years as a result).
Their energetic live show was notable for speedy fuzzy guitars pumped through Marshall stacks, unintelligible vocals, and the sight of 5'4" Fettish leaping two feet in the air, against a backdrop of six-foot-tall John Lennon-lookalike Halm and equally towering bassist Tim Ratley.
In 1984 the Wombats played a show with the seminal Columbus band Great Plains, who brought them to the attention of Gerard Cosloy at Homestead Records. The Wombats subsequently recorded one EP for Homestead, "Mudpuddles", which came out in 1985. Unfortunately, the band had a falling out with Cosloy over their inability to tour, since drummer Tommy Edwards was busy studying to be a refrigerator repairman. As a result, promotion for "Mudpuddles" was almost nil and the 'Bats found themselves once again without a label.
In 1986, Fettish and Halm wrote and recorded some excellent demos for a third album which they hoped to place on a major label, but due to lack of interest this project never saw the light of day. Since then, the 'Bats have played sporadically around Cleveland with various lineups.
C.L. Blue
The AK-47s
Bill DeGidio - Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
Larry Lewis - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Randy Primozic - Bass, Vocals
John Dinero - Drums
Bart Hildy - Drums
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Ya know, I actually could have been the singer in the AK-47s. Russ DeGidio was supposed to handle the vocals, but about 4 days before their first gig, he split town.
Bill DeGidio (Robert Conn) called me and asked if I wanted to sing...
I think the first show was on a Monday night and I had just gotten hired at some shop and my first night was 2nd shift on that Monday night. Bad career move in retrospect.
Anyhow, I suggested to Bill that he take over the vocals instead of bass and call a friend of mine, Randy Primozic, and try him at bass. It worked out. Still haunts me that I could have been on that now legendary Cleveland Confidential EP. Bill was a god.
A lot of well deserved credit goes to Mike Hudson for inspiring (or fucking up) a bunch of us youngsters at the time to start bands, but Bill was definitely the major influence on those of us from the eastside.
At one point, Bill safety pinned an American flag (a small one, about 12"x10") to the back of his leather and had written in black magic marker a bunch of band names on it. Then one Sunday afternoon he sat in his garage unleashing a guitar attack upon his quiet conservative Mentor neighborhood.
The cops arrived and Bill ended up arrested for defacing the flag. Another AK-47 moment was when Randy and I were near a Gold Circle Dept. store in Willoughby Hills. It was about 2:00 in the afternoon and for some stupid reason we pulled up next to the front of the building and I got out and spray painted the bands name on the brick storefront. We ended up getting nabbed on that one as someone had turned in his plate numbers. We sorta got out of it but not before we had to wire brush the paint off and also endure a long lecture from a cop who had been in Nam and kept asking us if we knew what the hell an AK-47 was.
Cheese
The Easter Monkeys
Mr. Chris (Chris Yarmock) - Vocal (lead), Sax
Jim Jones - Guitar
Linda Hudson - Drums
Charlie Ditteaux - Bass
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A long line of squares crowded the East 24th street sidewalk , waiting to enter the vaunted Cleveland Agora. I walked up and cut left towards the door. Yeah, I'm talking about the other door. The lonely heavy metal rusted out one that took ya down and into the Pop Shop.
At the bottom of the stairs I gave Roger a couple of bucks, a quick hello, and I was in. I had timed the microdot well. I remember wondering if the electricity I felt pumping, felt pulsating - was it me? was is it the room? Looking around I saw the usual faces. Faces of a growing scene, a scene now close to a hundred strong. They were the faces of those that were becoming friends and many would stay that way for years.
The loud cackle slowly subdued as the Easter Monkeys made their way onto the cramped stage and started to make some noise. Linda adjusted her stool, while getting in a couple of kicks. Chris, hunched a bit, raised and lowered his mic stand while making some random inaudible check comments. Charlie fidgeted with a cigarette. And Jimmy? Well, Jimmy faced his amp, an amp as tall as he was. He twisted some knobs, paused, twisted them some more , stopped, and then came a hush, for the shortest of moments, as he turned to the audience, smiled, and then, well then, believe me Jimmy Jones did let it
loose. Jimmy Jones did open the bottle. In an instant, I realized that the band and the now throbbing crowd had also timed that microdot well. What transpired over the next sixty minutes, no words can explain. Nothing would ever be better. Years later, a friend would say to me, "ya know, we saw the best band in the world that night". I chuckled, but the more I thought about it the more I knew he was right. For no matter whatever else was happening on a stage that night, anywhere on this planet, we were the ones witnessing the miracle, the burning bush. We were the ones being abducted. But, ya know, it wiforever be a myth, just another fish tale, just one more urban legend. But I do swear it's true. I had honestly gotten to see, hear and hold lightning. I could try to tell the tale, try to explain it, but only a handful, nearly a hundred strong at that point, will ever really know.
The Easter Monkeys formed in 1980 with Jim Jones on guitar, Chris Yarmock vocals and sax, Charlie Ditteaux as the bassist , and the Hudson brother's little sister, Linda, behind the skins. Prior to this, three of them had already took part in some legendary stuff. Jonesy was the most well known of the bunch, from his Mirrors days as well as being the main man at the downtown Record Rendezvous location. Mr. Chris had fronted the tragically unheralded band The Kneecappers while Charlie had played in The Impalers (who landed the cut Hit & Run on the infamous Cleveland Confidential EP). Linda was the new kid but she had the pedigree and Charlie knew she would be the right fit after Linda had once auditioned to drum for the aforementioned Impalers while that band was in its final days of falling apart.
"We were bored and it was something to do" Chris explains. "It was a way of life for us still in the city. Cleveland had been rotting away for years. It had become abandoned, fruitless. We got our kicks by making music. We drank and drugged together. We lived in cheap houses. It was a fun way to waste time. There was no expectations other than that, just to have some laughs. We ate too much acid. We made noise in the Cat City basement. We called it psychedelic jazz. Oh, and I gotta mention Ghoulardi.
We'd been raised on Ghoulardi and he flowed in our blood. You can never ignore the effect Ghoulardi had here." Their song Cheap Heroin was included on Mike Hudson's 1982 Cleveland Confidential LP released on Terminal Records. As the few hundred copies that had been pressed slowly began to make their way outside of Cleveland, the Easter Monkeys cut was the one that caught the attention of many. A full albums worth of material they had recorded also began to make its way around in underground circles on cassette tapes, dubs of dubs, and the Monkeys legend grew further. But back home they soon
sputtered out.
In 1984 it came to an end. There was no official break up. There was no drama, no bad blood, no hard feelings. The band had just run its course. Those cassette tapes were the only remaining evidence until the songs were released on vinyl, the Splendor Of Sorrow LP, in 1990 on Hit & Run Records. The word I hear most from those that saw the band live or from those describing the first time they heard the Monkeys' music is mesmerized. I spent a night once, with nearly a hundred others, mesmerized. No other word explains it so well.
Cheese Borger
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When the Easter Monkeys formed in 1980, drummer Linda Hudson was only 17. So her recollections of the early days are a bit murky.
It's a mystery to me," she replies when asked how singer Chris Yarmock, bassist Charlie Ditteaux and guitarist Jim Jones came together to create the group. "The rest of the members were in their 30s. They were friends of my brothers [Pagans Mike and Brian Hudson]. I got into the whole scene through my brothers and friends of their friends. I was asked to play drums through Charlie."
She does, however, remember the band's first gig at the Sports Page, a long-closed sports bar in the Flats.
"It was a weird place to play," she recalls. "There was Chief Wahoo on the back wall. It went pretty well actually. The kids were there and were slam dancing and formed a mosh pit while the sports patrons were watching the TV. It was a mixed crowd, but it was well received. There were some other bands we played with that drew a lot of the people."
Singer Chris Yarmock says the Easter Monkeys, like their punk predecessors, were as much a way of life as a form of musical expression.
"It was just something to do, and it beat boredom," he says. "We were in this decaying city and had to do something. I thought it was a pretty good waste of time myself. Everybody drank together and lived together, and it was a hell of a lot of fun."
For its debut, Splendor of Sorrow, which has just been reissued on the Chicago-based Smog Veil label, the band went to local recording studio Soundstage 25 and adopted what Hudson says was a "professional attitude." You can tell from the tracks that the group was more musically talented than its irreverent attitude would have you believe. The album opens with the noisy "Take Another Pill," an acerbic number about conformity that's every bit as brash as anything by the Sex Pistols or the Damned. The stuttering, constipated vocals on "Monkey See Monkey Do" and the Cramps-like "My Baby Digs Graves" show the band's wide range. "Heaven 357," a moody tune about suicide, is downright epic. And Yarmock's lyrics often provide astute social commentary.
"I was raised Catholic, so I had damage there," he says. "We have songs about everything: religion, suicide, death, the usual stuff. We were all huge Ghoulardi fans. He was an influence on a lot of people. You don't realize how many people bonded because of him. We were mentioned in a Ghoulardi book, and that was the pinnacle of my career. What could be better? I could die in peace now."
Splendor of Sorrow has never been released on CD before. Yarmock says the reissue has been in the works for some time and that Jones was trying to get it out before he died last year. Smog Veil owner Frank Mauceri kept at it.
"I have to admire Frank for his persistence," says Yarmock, adding that the CD features bonus cuts and extensive liner notes with archival photos. "It finally came together, and I'm really happy about the way it turned out."
Neither Yamock nor Hudson recall why the band dissolved in 1984, but each stressed there was never a divisive dispute or blow-up.
"I don't remember why we quit playing; I can't even tell you a good story," says Yarmock, now a Tremont-based artist. "Maybe Jim would have had another take on it. We went on to other things. Everyone went from one thing to the next."
Hudson, a computer analyst living outside of Nashville, agrees.
"I don't know why we broke up, but I can tell you this — the whole band was for fun," she says. "I don't know why it stopped or why we didn't pursue it, but I think it's because we felt if we really tried to work on it, it wouldn't be fun. We went to practice and whatever came out, came out. We didn't work on riffs or structure. We just did it for the fun."
J. Niesel
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I never got to hear the Easter Monkeys play, but I knew Linda Hudson, the drummer of the group some years later in Cookeville, Tennessee, where she was working in radio and local theater. She told me how the Monkeys got their name.
Forgive me for not remembering the finer points of the story, but one day they were all sitting around trying to come up with a name for the band. One of them laid eyes on a stuffed toy monkey that someone's girlfriend had bought them for Easter. "How about 'The Easter Monkeys'... and the name stuck.
Scotty Matthews
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I had already known Jim Jones from the record store where he managed and met Chris Yarmock through him. When I found out they had a new group and ready to play out I was excited and even more enthused that I could help out in some way w/ their inaugural debut.
Downtown Cleveland trips for me usually included various record stores, Moser's and a trip to the copy shop where they had the only color copier in town (One that could produce Iron on Transfers!).
Jones thought it would be great for the Easter Monkeys to wear some shirts emblazoned with an image of the Shroud of Turin since it was Holy Saturday and handed me a National Geographic magazine page to take to the copy shop to get some transfers done.
I made enough for their band and a couple for myself and a friend so we could proudly wear them to the gig. Well it was Holy Saturday and I was only 16 and as soon as my parents saw me going out w/ a shirt on w/ not only the Shroud and an Easter Monkeys logo but also my own addition of "Join the Shroud Crowd" painted in Holy Blood Red, I was immediately grounded, Exorcised and prayed over! Never did get to see the show! Blasphemy! Sacrilege!
But saw plenty of other shows afterwards. One of those shows being at Tucky's, an old downtown rehabbed Disco Palace that a weird old man took over and booked bands to play there.
The place was complete with a lit dance floor ballroom upstairs and a downstairs bar complete w/ swings as barstools. Put together Punks, Alcohol and swings for barstools you got a lot of trouble or maybe just bruised ribs, knees and shins.
The downstairs bar also had some old stripper stage not deep enough to accommodate a band. The drummer would have to set up there or over to the side and then everyone else would sort of stand side by side, chorus-line style to play.
Everyone always seemed to be at odds w/ old man Tucky. Lack of promised money, canceling shows, reneging on promises, etc. But it seemed like the biggest clashes were between him and The Easter Monkeys.
At the end of one of their shows (come to think of it it might have been the end of Tucky's itself) the Monkeys left the stage w/ their instruments leaned against their amps making the loudest feedback noise I've ever heard. Just that image of Old man Tucky covering his ears and screaming at the Easter Monkeys is forever burned in my memory.
Paul Slava
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Keith Richards once said: "The greatest Rock-N-Roll band in the world is a different band every night."
Over a period of two years the Easter Monkeys claimed that title at least a couple dozen times. I saw every show the Monkeys did from '81-'83. Every time, I used to think to myself: "they can't possibly be as good as the were last time." Then they would slowly fade into "Take Another Pill" and you were in their trance.
One thing that always stood out to me was how loud they were. Not loud in a shrill way, but so loud you couldn't talk to anyone (including the bartender). In fact it was hard to concentrate on anything other than the band.
Linda and Charlie's low frequency throbbing dirge rattled the walls and your soul loose. Jim's swirling sonic thrashes at his Strat, pulled you in and then pushed you back out. In the middle of it all, the horror of Chris' sax screamed in between his satirical/social outbursts about the city and world we lived in.
"Nailed To The Cross" freed me from my Catholic upbringing, with a smirk on my face. "Camera Fo" reminded me of a time when late night TV really stood for something. "Heaven 357" made me realize that someday it all just might end.
I watched as they blew the Gun Club and X back to LA! I watched as Mr. Chris fell from the stage (sax in hand) onto an empty dance floor! I watched as Jim Jones redefined how the electric guitar could be played! I watched in total delight!
Then one day it was all over! With only a slab of wax and a few home made tapes to remind of that sonic explosion on the Rock-N-Roll timeline that was called the Easter Monkeys.
Scott Stemple
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The first time a saw the Easter Monkeys was at the Polish Library Home in Tremont (Which I believe was their second show) with The Clocks and Dr. Bloodmoney.
Chris' pants fell down while he was singing and then later he fell asleep on stage leaning against one of the amps. They had to wake him up to play guitar on "My Baby Digs Graves."
I was very impressed. I never missed a Monkeys show for the next three years.
Les Raving Sounds
Mike Metoff - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Mike Hudson - Rhythm Guitar
Linda Hudson - Drums
Chas Smith - Keyboards
Charlie Ditto - Bass
Eddie Kane - Bass
Pete Haskin - Sax
Nick Knox - Drums
Laura West - Backing Vocals
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Les Raving Sounds was a studio side project initiated by then Clocks guitarist Mike Metoff (a.k.a. Les Raving) and Mike Hudson. The name came from a French rockabilly record called "The Ravin' Sound".
Rotating members included Chas Smith on keyboards and tenor sax, Pete Haskin on alto sax, Eddie Kane and Charlie Ditto on bass, Linda Hudson and Nicky Knox on drums, and Laura West on backing vocals.
Two impromptu recording sessions in the basements at Cat City and the Music Emporium on E185th yielded several tracks, four of which were released in 1981 on a Terminal Records 7 inch. The second session ended when engineer Mike Crossen, noting the quantity of beer empties littering the studio, promptly threw the participants out. The song "Empty Bottles (Close the Door)" chronicles this incident. LRS performed live opening for the Clocks at the Warehouse in the Flats (pictured above).
An abbreviated line up with Chris Yarmock on vocals/sax also did a short set at a Polish hall along with Dr. Bloodmoney and the Easter Monkeys. In 1996, the song "Earth Boy Dream of Angel" appeared on the Cle Magazine compilation CD "Cleveland, So Much to Answer For".
The Defnics
Robert Conn - Vocal (lead), Guitar
Bob Sablack - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Johnny Kerosec - Drums
Brandon Zart - Bass, Vocals
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The Defnics started out as No Dogs. It was Jim, Brandon and I with the addition of a new friend Bill DeGidio (R. Conn). We met Bill through Mark Vocca who worked with Brandon. Bill and Mark were baseball and fishing buddies. It was Mark's idea to set Bill up with us. I don't really remember the details but he did it.
There is a "studio" tape of No Dogs recorded in downtown Willoughby at a storefront we practiced at for a minute. This hippie guy Bill knew had a tape machine and we did five or six songs. The place was all plate glass facing the street. I remember one day we were playing and this guy was pounding on the window. Bill was saying "Don't pay attention to him he's an idiot." That guy was asshole murderer Richard Pinto. He kept coming around but I’m not sure if that was the reason that we vacated that spot.
After a while we started playing at Brandon's place in Mentor-on-the-Lake. Bill wrote all of the material for No Dogs although Brandon penned "Hello from Berlin" during this period too. Most of those tunes were used in the Defnics, and I played some of those songs in my last punk band the Plague. Songs such as "No Future" and "Crime on My Mind" were performed for ten years. No Dogs never saw the light of day. After hearing a practice tape, Hudson said we could have opened for the Pagans if they were still together.
That kind of blew my mind, because with the addition of DeGidio we had an inside track to the Cleveland scene. Not that we had a twisted Courtney Love rock-n-roll master plan or anything, we just happened to meet the right people at the right time. We were a happy band for a while but Jim grew tired of punk, after all it was 2 or 3 years old by then. He said it didn't have any soul, he was way into what The Clash were doing then. Jim quit playing drums for No Dogs in search of a Master's belt in Kun Tau Kung Fu, I think he got it.
NEW ORDER
So there we were at the end of 1980 without a drummer. My cousin John Korosec use to fool around with a set that his brother's friend would leave at his house. John wasn't supposed to play them but if you know Johnny an order such as that might as well have not been uttered at all. He bought a kit off this local cover group called Abraxas. He got good at them pretty fast and then he was in the band, which was rechristend Defnics.
The name Defnics came from Johnny. One summer afternoon when John and I were around twelve years old, we were sitting in his parent's living room watching TV. We would practice at that same house, 19207 Cherokee Rd. off E.185th St. near the projects, years later. I guess John was saying something to me but I wasn't paying attention. All I remember was hearing him saying "Defnic, hey defnic are you listening to me?" I thought it was a funny word and I never forgot it. Johnny is a naturally hilarious guy, he's always making words up and busting balls. So when we were standing around the basement/jam room trying to think of a new name I offered up John's "Defnics". Everyone liked it but John had no idea that he made it up some eight years earlier, I had to tell him.
This was a great time for me. It was Punk Rock 101. It was these days that I learned:
1.) You won't make any money and
2.) You won't make any money. By the time Grunge broke everyone I knew were hanging up their guns and the "new punks" were making the money.
C’est la vie.
Having Bill in the band was great; he always had real cool insights and was the voice of reason. He was the only one who had done something band wise out of all of us. We loved the fact we had a Pagan in the band. Punk was fun and life was good! As Brandon said, "All I want to play is Punk, Punk and more Punk." That was cool with me. I showed Brandon how to play a couple of songs a few years earlier and now he was writing more and better songs than me, and I was playing since I was thirteen. I never saw anyone take to music that fast. He was a natural.
LOVE YOU LIVE
Our first show was at the Euclid Tavern with the Generics. It was o.k. I guess, I mean I don’t remember being nervous or playing badly or anything. The best part was that the guys working the bar were yelling at us, saying we sucked and to turn it down. I guess they didn’t like "Red Spy" or "Governor’s Daughter". They even shut the board down on us. Not too hip for the now hip Euclid Tavern.
That place was strictly a blues bar back then and they were trying out this new wave stuff. So dare I say that the Generics and the Defnics were the first punk/new wave/alternative band to play the Tavern? Our next shows were at The Flipside on Green Road. That was the place the cover photo to our 45 and most of the pictures on this site are from.
That night it was the Revolvers and the Defnics. One night there, this barfly chick was really fucking with Johnny for no reason. After about an hour of haranguing he had to tell her, "Look, I hit women." That didn’t even shut her up, so her boyfriend was called and he came to the bar, bitched her out and dragged her out of there. Other places we played were The Sports Page in the Flats, Tuckeys up and down, JB's in Kent, The Pop Shop and believe it or not, this was a real place: Stairway to Rock Heaven way out in the boonies. That place sucked because there was this long stairway you had to drag your equipment up to get to the room where you played. Rock Heaven indeed. We did that show with Raven Slaughter, those guys were cool. They were genuinely interested in punk even though their bag was the Bowie/Mott thing.
During those days I met a lot of great punks like Alex & Romona Strouhal (they never missed a show), Michelle, Colleen, Laverne and Mom Mulhan, Tim Kelly and Joe Little.
Bob Sablack
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TERMINAL SPIRAL SCRATCHINGS
Defnics only cut one 45, "51%" b/w "Hello from Berlin". Those were recorded at Angel Studio on Mayfield Road for Hudson’s Terminal Records. It was summer 1981. I don’t think I threw in for the records because I was crying poor mouth. Those guys were probably thinking "cheap bastard". I remember doing the art for the back cover photo. I had all the credits perfectly lettered in perspective but something happened to the art, it got ruined some how and Bill had to redo it.
So after this Barney guy had them printed up I saw Bill’s version, which looked cooler because the lettering looked warped. For the front cover Bill took some White•Out and lettered Defnics and that was it. We all went over to his house one night and cut the prints up and glue sticked the covers to the sleeves of 1,000 records at his kitchen table. Some of the prints ran in blue ink, which were cool and some of them the press messed up so the image was offset and multiplied three times. Those sleeves looked really cool!
We also had a cut on Mike Hudson’s Cleveland Confidential. That was Suicide Trip, one of my favorite Defnics songs. We did that one at Mike Crossen’s studio on E.185th St. So far that’s it for our recording history. Cheese has a version of "Governor’s Daughter" coming out on his compilation PIE&EARS in Feb. 2001. I’m putting out a CD soon of all our studio stuff (5 songs) plus some live and practice material. It won’t all be studio quality but definitely decent sounding.
ENTER SKINHEADS
The Defnics found our selves at war with the Kent skinhead contingent. I guess it was a clash of punk ideology if there is such a thing. The band in particular was Zero Defex: Tommy Strange, Jimi Imij and Johnny Phlegm, I can’t remember their drummers name from the original line up but I know he was active in the Kent music scene long after ODFX broke up. We played a party with them there. We were stinking the joint up with pot smoke and were drinking beer and generally being our Cleveland selves. I think this was when ODFX decided they didn’t like our style.
We certainly didn’t fuck with them. So by the time the Grand Slam events were going on we were full-fledged enemies. I even wrote a song called "Skinheads Suck". They didn’t like that song. It was silly but like I said we didn’t fuck with them. After the Defnics broke up and we all went our separate ways, the skins booked the Misfits at this small party center they dubbed Club Hell, "Mommy can I go to Hell?" the flyer said. I went down there with Michelle Mulhan who I was dating at the time, and when we got out of the car I saw Jimi Imij approaching us. I though "Oh boy, here we go." But instead of being rude to each other or whatever, Jimi extended his hand and said something to the effect "Let’s knock this stuff off, we’re all punks, we should be on the same side." Which was really very cool of him to do because that’s how I felt but I would have never made the first move to bury the hatchet. He was so right because back then if you were a punk, everybody automatically hated you anyway, no room for in fighting. Nicely done Jimi.
BOOT HILL
So we played out as the Defnics on the East Side for almost two years. The Defnics broke up in the summer of 1982. Bill went on to join the second formation of the Pagans, the Pink Pagans as they were later referred to because of the pink LP covers and to separate that iteration from the near original line up that was to happen around ‘85. Brandon joined Red October with Chris Andrews. I started the Plague with Duke Snyder and Johnny. Also, I was jamming in the Pink Holes with Bob and Kevin drumming as Dick Hertz. The Defnics were definitely a blast and a learning experience for me. Viva la DEFNICS!
Bob Sablack
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We recorded 51% at this posh recording studio called Angel Recording. There were pictures of the OJays on the wall and stuff (nothing against those guys). The engineer (Mike Way) was somewhat of a shween (you've heard of the king of the jungle, well this guy was the dick of the woods). He didn't like us and we didn't like him. He told me i was playing beyond my capabilities. So what, we were paying for the time. I remember setting the snare drum sound and he said it was the worst snare drum he ever heard. I thought it sounded like the English band the Fall. I love 51%, but this butt plug made it sound too clean, oh well.
The Defnics recordings we did with Mike Crossen on 185th all ruled as far as i'm concerned. Suicide Trip is my all time fave. Here's the story on that. We went in the studio one afternoon and started laying down basic tracks. We did three songs that day, Suicide Trip, Life So Fast and Brandon's ditty My Girl. Mike Hudson was there overseeing his Terminal buddies in action. If you haven't heard it, Suicide Trip has a long solo at the end. We never practiced it like that before we went in the studio, I think it was an idea that just sprung up. So, Johnny, Brandon and Bill (a.k.a. Robert Conn) lay down the rhythm track. I was kinda scared because the end of the song seemed to go on forever while I listened to them play. So next it's my turn to do this thing. I'm sitting there on a bar stool in the middle of the recording room with headphones on and my Stratocaster looking through the control room window.
All my buds are on the other side watching me. Mike Crossen rolls the tape and everything was cool up until I get to that solo thing. I did make a little mistake on the chord change in the first chorus, I smeared the barre chord a little but it sounded good! Now it's time to jam. It was all made up there and became a template for every other time we played it from then on. And to be truthful no other version came off as well as that one did. I made up some kind of descending riff for the beginning of the solo and after that it was all vibratos and noisy soloing to give the impression of a bad trip. So I'm wailing away for a while and I think it's all good and I'm ready to throw in the towel so I look up and both Mikes, Brandon and Bill are waving their hands in a KEEP GOING motion. I'm all OH FUCK, they're all keep going. So I put my head back down and kept going.
They had the advantage of seeing the counter on the tape machine and knew I was only half through my part. It seemed like an eternity. I dug in and kept playing. Recently I recognized the spot in the song where I looked up. So after a while I reverted to the descending riff to end the solo which happened at exactly the right time, just dumb luck. After all these years of recording and playing that moment is my most treasured. It's funny how a million things can go wrong in a studio but when they go right it's better than bustin' a nut. Mike Hudson said it was the second favorite song he ever sang on. When I asked him what was the first, he wouldn't answer.
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Music always fascinated me. I was a Hendrix freak by the time I was in seventh grade, which was three years after his death.
Kids on the block were playing guitar so when my friend Eric (Duke Snyder's older brother) picked it up, I had to learn. All my friends were into music.
Jim Damm was a kid that transferred from St. Robert's in Euclid to my school. Jim was a kick ass drummer. Oddly enough we would play upstairs in Jim's bedroom while his folks sat downstairs. Yes it was loud, but they let us do it.
So Jim and I started jamming in grade school. When were in high school we met Brandon Zart and were practicing Bowie, Sex Pistols and such with no name or any intention of playing out. I guess we turned into a real band when Bill came along.
The Generics
Tom Miller - Guitar, Vocals
Mark Vocca - Guitar, Vocals
Bob Richey - Drums
Tom Hamilton - Bass
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These guys were great. One of the fastest bands in Cleveland at the time or any other time. And tight to boot. Plus they were all cool people. Through these guys I met my good ol' buddy Bob Richey. He was 15 and I was around 21. We later started the Pink Holes, and later 2 Bobs.
My Generics story is, one day I popped by Mike Crossen's studio because these guys were working there. I was there just to check things out and get high. Well, Mark Vocca suggests that I do the solo on M-16 (one hell of a thumpin' punkin' song). I was all for it but the look on Tom Miller's face was "What the fuck Vocca, what are you saying!" This may have been Tom’s first time recording in a studio. But Mark pulled rank and had me do it.
I remember doing two takes, I really liked the first one but some technical problem had me do it over. All in all it came off really nice. And that was it. I never heard that song again for another 18 years.
Then Bob Richey called me and told me he had recently spoken to Mark and that Mark had sent him an MP3 of M-16. It was such a blast to hear it again after so much time had passed. But the best part of doing that string bending was that Vocca told me he got laid in San Antonio by telling some chick that it was him on the solo. Oh yeah!!! The Ladies Man!
Bob Sablack
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The thing I've remembered most about recording "M-16" has nothing to do with the actual song.
Like you Bob, I've never owned a copy of the tape. A few weeks ago I was visiting my parents and finally did hear it after twenty years. What the hell, it's a pretty fuckin' cool punk tune! I'm also pretty positive that had I done the solo, Vocca never would have gotten laid by claiming to have played it!
Anyway, what I'll never forget is our friend Tim Kelly tagging along for the session and swilling a bottle of cheap booze. Before too long he was drunk as hell, but no one payed much attention--I guess we were too busy with our song. During the mixing stage however, young Tim suddenly leaned over in his chair and projected a virtual lake of vomit all over Crossen's studio floor! Truly a definative PUNK ROCK move!
To his credit, Mike didn't appear too fazed by it. He just brought out a mop and we cleaned it up and went on with our business.
Tom Miller
The Revolvers
Dave Atkins - Vocals
Tom Fallon - Lead Guitar, Vocal
Sam Petrello - Drums
Tony Sassano - Bass
Dave Nared - Bass
The Dark
Tom Dark - Vocals
Robert Griffin - Lead Guitar, Vocal
Dave Araca - Drums
Scott Eakin - Bass
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The Dark! These guys (youths) were unbelievable. Ages from 13 to 15 years old, but man how they could play. The guitarist could unleash notes with the speed of a machine gun when he felt like it. However, at least in the beginning, he would downplay this in favor of the power chords. I only heard him pull off these monster riffs when he would blow a note, get pissed and add this rapid fire stuff in. We used to actually yell at them to put more lead in their songs. Mike Hudson knew them and had taken them under his wing. They got a gig set up at a Kent warehouse type party and Mike and I drove them to it.
We loaded up the two cars and headed south. Mike and I began racing each other, down those dark country roads, passing each other on the left in the face of oncoming vehicles and also at times on the right shoulder. A cop coming the other way witnesses a bit of our actions and turns around to begin his pursuit. I ditched it off on a side street and pulled in behind a building and hid for a bit. Hudson wasn't as lucky.
The cop pulled him over and asked, "Where's the other car?" Mike denied knowing who the other car was or what the hell they were doing driving like that. Then the cop asked Mike, "You been drinking?" He replied, "I had a drink with dinner, sir". I guess if a bottle of wine is a "drink" and a half pack of smokes is "dinner" then Mike was telling the truth.
The cop looked deeper into the car and sees all these young kids in leather jackets and chopped hair and who knows what else and asks Hudson, "What is with you guys?" Hudson replies, "We're a band". The cop wants to know, "WHAT KIND OF BAND." Mike tells him, "PUNK ROCK!". The cop just told him to get out of here.
Anyhow, we finally make it to the gig with the band in check. Another hassle takes place as the doorman is trying to make us (including the band) pay to get in. Hudson negotiates with him in that Hudson manner and things get worked out. Inside there is a good crowd. The space is dark and maze like. The Dark play about twenty minutes and are as great and throbbing as usual. After that we all just looked at each other and it was like "Go?" "Yep" and so we split. We took the 40 mile drive back a little slower.
Rand Primos
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When The Dissidents first starting playing out, we were inexperienced to say the least. We always took refuge in the fact that we were only 16-17 year olds. "How good do you expect us to be? We're just kids!" One night at Tucky's that all changed. I believe it was a benefit for the Cleveland Confidential album. We went down to the show. It was the first time we had seen the Dark. We were blown away! Tommy Dark and Robert Griffin were our age, Scott (bass) was only 13 and Dave (drums) was only 14. They were great! Good songs, tight arrangements, and loads of energy. That night the Dark inadvertently pushed us to be a better band, and over a period of time we became one. The "we're just kids" excuse no longer worked.
Scott Stemple
The Dissidents
Scott Stemple - Guitar, Vocals
Paul Slava - Bass, Keyboard, Vocals
John D'arcy - Bass
Rick Jablonski - Drums
Nicky Spetrino - Drums
Tim Poparad - Guitar
Koz – Drums
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In late 1979 Scott and John met Paul Slava at St. Joseph High School in Cleveland. Paul upon hearing their inspired noise joined on keyboards in the summer of 1980. They changed their name to The Dissidents. The original line-up spent the fall and winter of 1980/81 writing and recording in Scott's parents' basement and spare bedroom. In early 1981 John left for the Air Force. Scott, Paul and The Mutant continued writing and recording.
Assembling a 60 minute tape of punk and avant garage music called 'Conformity Is Deformity'. Promoting with flyers and circulating their tape through the underground scene via Jim Jones, who then worked at Record Rendezvous on Prospect. They began to gain a small (very small) cult following. They played their first gig in the summer of 1981 at Collinwood V.F.W. on E. 140th St. with Tim Poparad, another High School friend filling in on bass. A rough tape of this show still exists. Also during that summer Paul began to play bass. Because of The Mutants' poor rehearsal attendance Scott and Paul decided to "can" The Mutant and find a new drummer.
Paul and Scott met Scruffs aka Jimmy Devito (Impalers) at a show in Tremont and asked if she'd be interested in drumming. They rehearsed few times. But because lack of transportation (Scruffs in Rocky River. Scott and Paul in Collinwood). It was decided to scrap the idea. In October the band landed a spot playing a benefit for Cle Magazine at the Pop Shop (also via Jones). Under the gun they asked Tim Poparad (guitar) and his friend Nicky Spetrino (drums) to join the band. This line-up played out several times. Including three shows at Tucky's on top of the Flats.
Tucky's on W. 9th St. & St. Clair was the hot spot that fall. The last of their three shows at Tucky's was upstairs in front of a good 300-400 people. Because of new bass strings and too much alcohol the room was empty by the time the band had finished, with the exception of Mr. Chris and Charlie from the Easter Monkeys, they congratulated the band on their feat of clearing the entire place out. This line-up culminated their existence on Tim's 18th birthday at a Irish bar in Cleveland Heights called Tim Ryan's Pub. A very heavy downpour caused the basement to flood. Which is where The Dissidents were playing. They were literally playing electric instruments while standing in five inches of water. Needless to say the show ended early.
In early 1982 Paul and Scott looking for a more "punk" sound asked Koz aka Zok (who'd just left the Basics) to join on drums. This line-up played numerous gigs that winter. The Flipside in Cleveland Heights on it's last leg. Invited the Offbeats and the Defnics to play on a Tuesday and Wednesday night respectively with The Dissidents opening both nights. The bands played for six regulars at the bar (who seemed to be annoyed that they couldn't hear "Jeopardy" over the music) and the other band.
That spring Tom Miller aka Tommy Hawk (Offbeats) called Scott and asked if they'd like to play at a mansion in Bratenahl on one condition they needed to use The Dissidents drummer. The party itself was for Tom Hamilton's little sister's birthday. But, after seeing The Hamilton's easygoing nature and generosity Paul and Scott invited everyone they could get a hold of. It turned into a very memorable night, The Dissidents opened for a rough reformation of the Generics. In attendance that night was a decades worth of Cleveland underground talent: Jim Jones, Mr. Chris, Charlie, Linda (Easter Monkeys), Mike Metoff (Pagans), Gary Lupico (Kneecappers), Jeff Morrison (Home & Garden), Tommy Dark (The Dark), and Tony Maimone (Pere Ubu). To conclude the evening everyone took a late night dip in the Hamilton's indoor basement swimming pool.
In April of 1982 six Cleveland bands piled into cars and drove down to Akron to play The Bank (Devo's old venue). The event dubbed 'Grand Slam II' wasn't the hardcore event it was advertised to be but memorable nonetheless. The bill featured: Easter Monkeys, Defnics, Offbeats, The Dissidents, The Dark, Breathing Blankets (Mike Hudson's new band) all from Cleveland, and the Zero Defex and Chainsaw from Akron.
In June of 1982 sick of playing the same old songs and sick of each other The Dissidents played their last show live at WRUW's second annual Studio-A-Rama, a live radio broadcast with Dr. Bloodmoney, The Mommios, Monte Carmont, and Neptune's Car.
If you look in the right light at the right angle you can see The Dissidents left a significant scrape on the Cleveland punk underground landscape.
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In early 1979 I loaned my copy of the Pere Ubu album DUB HOUSING to Scott and Paul of the Dissidents. They were still in high school at the time. I heard of how they took it to a party, put it on the turntable and less than a minute into it all the girls in the room were going; OOOOHH! OH MY GOD! WHAT IS THAT!? GET THAT THING OFF! I always loved that story.
Lenny Hoffman
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One of my favorite Dissident stories: I spent a lot of drunken nights with Scott and Paul. One night after their band practice I volunteered to drive one of their girlfriends home. In the car: was me (driving), Scott (passenger seat), and Paul and the two girls in the backseat The girl we were dropping off lived in Euclid on the north side of Lakeshore. So we dropped off the two girls so one could say goodnight to the other (or whatever girls do when they disappear together in such situations).
While we were waiting we decided to drive around the block and dump off a couple cases worth of empty beer cans that were in the car. When we got down to a street that ran along the lake Paul & Scott rolled down their windows and pitched all these cans into the street. They made quite a racket as they spilled out to the curbs. Mission accomplished we returned to pick up the other girl. While we were waiting there all of a sudden the passenger door swung open and there stood a very big, very pissed off guy who'd just witnessed our disposal routine on his street.
He grabbed Scott by his collar and demanded we go back and pick up the cans. I said: "let go of my friend and we'll go pick them up!" He was unwilling to compromise and wouldn't let go of Scott. So I threw the car in reverse and proceeded to drag him backwards with the open car door down the street. During this he was repeatedly punching Scott. He finally fell and then I threw the car and drive and got the hell out of there. The other girl was standing on the sidewalk watching so I yelled out the window "LISA! RUN!."
While I was driving however I was getting pissed that we were running from this guy. Not to mention leaving Lisa behind. So when I got around the corner I stopped, turned off the ignition and went to the trunk to get a crow bar to "educate" this fucker! While I was opening the trunk (Scott and Paul still in the car) here he comes again! Running up the street! He had chased the car around the block! I screamed! Like a little girl in a bad horror movie (it still cracks me up that I screamed).
I ran and jumped back into the car. Scott and Paul were yelling at me to get the hell out of there. The guy was punching the windows and kicking the doors as I fumbled with the keys trying to start the car (just like a movie). For some reason the window never did break but he did kick my mirror off! I finally got it started and we got out of there. Afterwards we did the only thing good red blooded American youths would, we went and got more beer, had a laugh about it. Then about an hour later we went back and looked for my mirror.
Norbert Sanek
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The second time we played Tucky's (downstairs),Scene magazine misspelled Dissidents as "Desidents". So the following week there was a band called Destitute (a power pop trio) playing upstairs at Tucky's. But the Scene once again put "Desidents" in their ad for that night. So Paul and I went down (ad in hand) and told 'em we were supposed to be playing. Mr. Tucky did not agree. After an hour or so of badgering old man Tucky he finally said: "if you can get the other bands to agree to let you play, then you can play."
So we asked the other bands (Destitute and House Of Usher). They said, "no problem." So me and Paul called Tim and Nicky to come down with their gear. We weren't going on until 1:00am so we had a 4 or 5 hours to sit around and drink. Tim had already had too much to drink! So me, Paul and Nicky helped Tim out to the car to sleep it off for couple of hours. When we went out to get him about an hour and a half later. We were horrified to find that he'd been sitting in the car the whole time drinking the rest of the beer we had brought. To make matters worse, Paul had just gotten new strings on his bass and Tim being the most accomplished musician of the group was in charge of tuning everything up. We cleared the place! Our attitude was always: "FUCK 'EM! IF THEY DON'T LIKE IT THEY CAN LEAVE!" That night they did.
Scott Stemple
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Koz was great drummer! He was the last ingredient we needed to have a good, tight band. The problem was he was "shall we say" careful with his money (and kind of insane). The song "The Almighty Dollar" was written about Koz (though he never knew that part). Johnny Korosec recently told me that he'd bet what's left of his liver that Koz is probably a millionaire now (just from drug deals and stinginess). I wouldn't doubt it. I don't think he ever had a real job, but always had plenty of cash. Paul's dad (Slim) had a bartending job in Wickliffe.
One time Slim needed to get to work so he asked Koz for a ride. Koz after complaining about how much gas it would take to drive from E. 200 St. to E. 305 St. and back (about 4 miles), finally agreed to give him a ride. When he dropped him off, Slim slipped Koz $10 and said "thanks, here buy yourself a beer." So on the way home Koz stopped at a beverage store and bought a case of Old Dutch "The Good Beer" (it said that on the label, so it must be true).
Koz had that case for about 3 months. Every now and then when we were practicing Paul and I would help ourselves to a warm Old Dutch from Koz's closet. He'd get really pissed that we had the nerve to drink some of his beer (when we were actually doing him a favor). I don't know where Koz is these days but I'd be willing to bet what's left of Johnny's liver that he still has a few cans of Old Dutch left.
Scott Stemple