Foothill Music Calendar for local Bands

Paralyzed at the Incognito Coffee House...written by The "Grinder"
	As the normally sleepy little coffee shop tucked away on the side of the National Hotel welcomed their Saturday night frenzies filled with local rock bands and their young, energetic followers heating up the room, I was thinking in mid sweat from all of the teen spirit in the room...this must be the second coming! I wasn't able to see the first band due to the hierarchy in which I make my living on. Paralyzed...a band of guys from Sacramento who went to high school together rushed onto the stage, er...uh...the floor in front of the chairs in the room and started belting out their signature shrieking vocals which reminded me of the old Death Metal I used to listen to. It was a scream that came from deep within Chris Gates' gut, or his soul, supported by some kick ass drumming with lightning fast rolls courtesy of Brent Amenero also of Rhythm Section. Rounding out the sounds were guitarist James Banks with his complex, "stand on his own" guitar licks and riffs followed by his almost eerie sounding background vocals, and John Callon on the bass with the thrashing, rumbling bass lines that gave Paralyzed the much needed backbone that they hadn't had a couple of years ago, hence the name from when they started playing gigs without a bassist. The crowd seemed to sit there at first like a bunch of school kids waiting for story time until Chris started handing out candy...I mean CD's! They started waking up from their naps and got downright rambunctious, jumping and thrashing about. I was thinking that the 100+ year old building was going to collapse around us. My only complaint is that the sound guy didn't seem to have it together and the bass cut out for an extended period of time and kind of took away of my first time seeing these guys and the music they were playing. But on a final note I hope these guys can find time in their busy schedules to send me a CD "Evolved". Looking on their website www.paralyzed-music.com I noticed they play all over NoCal from places like Campbell to Lodi to Sac to little old Jackson. I'd say these guys will be going places! -GRINDER

A Show a the Incognito Coffee House...written by The "Grinder"
	As I stroll down Main street towards Incognito, a tiny coffee house in Jackson, I was greeted by about 20 teenagers lurking around the front door. As I walked in, I noticed it was a quaint little place completely painted in yellow and bustling with the energy of youth and the sounds of musicians tuning and fiddling with their instruments. I ran into a friend of mine who said there was a band that played earlier called Formerly Known...or so it said on the flyer. He told me that they were pretty good, but he was there to see Runway Airplane. A band of friendly young guys about 21 or so who'd been together since '97. When I saw them, the first thing I was reminded of was something as fun and carefree to listen to as Sum 41 and Blink 182. Evan,(guitars/keyboards/vocals/special effects) was kind of the mad hatter of the group strutting and dancing around sort of like Angus Young, except with blonde hair. They would play a cool melody and then bust out with thrashing but progressive guitar riffs and drums that rattled the tables and shook the windows, followed by clever and rather poetic lyrics that spoke about life, nature, love and heartbreak. Among the songs they played which were both on their EP and unreleased tracks in which they are recording for their next CD due out shortly. I found their website to be very informative to the first timer such as myself. (www.runwayairplane.net) I thought they were really tight sounding, but I thought the vocals could've been a bit higher. I can't wait until their CD comes out, they're a very talented bunch of guys and I liked what I heard. The next band rolled onto the floor was Awara. I think they scared all of the teeny boppers away with their grizzly faces and an older hard edged look. They seemed like they were closer to my age. I was wowed and amazed by the sounds that were coming out of those amps! Good stuff! The music had a hard rock sound with a slight world infuence and a refreshing lack of distortion. The twang of the guitar seemed to dance around the room and set the mood for past summer moments on a beach somewhere. That was bolstered by some cool pedal effects which really set the music apart from anything I've ever heard. The singer had an almost velvety crooning voice which would explode into a shrieking Jim Morrison like scream from time to time. The Tabla drums brought a nice degree of World influence. The bassist seemed to have the most personality, putting on sunglasses and belting out the tune "rockstar" and doing backup vocals really added to the energy of the whole show. I broke a sweat watching these guys. The only gripe I had was that the bass amp was turned down so I couldn't hear it. The drummer seemed to be the one having the roughest time, but he stuck with it and kicked ass at it. I listened to the CD afterward and it was even better. I was wondering... How do I get a CD with "RAD BAD GROCERY GETTER" on it? You guys fully rock! Grinder!

As I stroll down Main street towards Incognito, a tiny coffee house in Jackson, I was greeted by about 20 teenagers lurking around the front door. As I walked in, I noticed it was a quaint little place completely painted in yellow and bustling with the energy of youth and the sounds of musicians tuning and fiddling with their instruments. I ran into a friend of mine who said there was a band that played earlier called Formerly Known...or so it said on the flyer. He told me that they were pretty good, but he was there to see Runway Airplane. A band of friendly young guys about 21 or so who'd been together since '97. When I saw them, the first thing I was reminded of was something as fun and carefree to listen to as Sum 41 and Blink 182. Evan,(guitars/keyboards/vocals/special effects) was kind of the mad hatter of the group strutting and dancing around sort of like Angus Young, except with blonde hair. They would play a cool melody and then bust out with thrashing but progressive guitar riffs and drums that rattled the tables and shook the windows, followed by clever and rather poetic lyrics that spoke about life, nature, love and heartbreak. Among the songs they played which were both on their EP and unreleased tracks in which they are recording for their next CD due out shortly. I found their website to be very informative to the first timer such as myself. (www.runwayairplane.net) I thought they were really tight sounding, but I thought the vocals could've been a bit higher. I can't wait until their CD comes out, they're a very talented bunch of guys and I liked what I heard.

The next band rolled onto the floor was Awara. I think they scared all of the teeny boppers away with their grizzly faces and an older hard edged look. They seemed like they were closer to my age. I was wowed and amazed by the sounds that were coming out of those amps! Good stuff! The music had a hard rock sound with a slight world infuence and a refreshing lack of distortion. The twang of the guitar seemed to dance around the room and set the mood for past summer moments on a beach somewhere. That was bolstered by some cool pedal effects which really set the music apart from anything I've ever heard. The singer had an almost velvety crooning voice which would explode into a shrieking Jim Morrison like scream from time to time. The Tabla drums brought a nice degree of World influence. The bassist seemed to have the most personality, putting on sunglasses and belting out the tune "rockstar" and doing backup vocals really added to the energy of the whole show. I broke a sweat watching these guys. The only gripe I had was that the bass amp was turned down so I couldn't hear it. The drummer seemed to be the one having the roughest time, but he stuck with it and kicked ass at it. I listened to the CD afterward and it was even better. I was wondering...

How do I get a CD with "RAD BAD GROCERY GETTER" on it? You guys fully rock! Grinder!