TheDeliKC
Artists on Trial: Rev Gusto
Rev Gusto is fairly new to the local music scene, recently releasing its debut EP. The energetic and revivalistic garage pop Rev Gusto creates complements much of the music in the local scene while also putting its own stamp on it. With several upcoming shows, including a fundraiser for MidCoast Takeover, this 5-piece group introduces itself and tells us what to expect.
The Deli: Down and dirty: 1 sentence to describe your music. What is it?
Rev Gusto: Indie garage pop music that is perfect for warm nights and backyard BBQs.
The Deli: Tell us about your debut self-titled EP. For those who haven’t gotten it yet, what can they expect?
Rev:Our new EP has five tracks. They showcase a diverse variety of tunes, catchy hooks, and guitar riffs.
The Deli: What does supporting local music mean to you?
Rev: It means going out to late shows, having a good time, and loving the music our city has to offer.
The Deli: Who are your favorite “local” musicians right now?
Rev: We have a lot of favorite's including The ACB's, The Sluts, She's A Keeper, and Zach Jackson & the Funky Few.
The Deli: Who are your favorite not-so-local musicians right now?
Rev: We decided that we each have one choice. So here they are in no particular order: The Wave Pictures, Ike Reilly, The Flaming Lips, The Kooks, and Allo' Darlin.
The Deli: What is your ultimate fantasy concert bill to play on?
Rev: We would love to be on a bill with any one of Jack White's projects, The Black Keys, and The Flaming Lips. With an encore including Paul McCartney and The (reincarnated) Ramones.
The Deli: Would you rather spend the rest of your life on stage or in the recording studio?
Rev: On stage; no question. Our favorite part is feeding off the energy of playing a show and putting it into our music.
The Deli: A music-themed Mount Rushmore. What four faces are you putting up there and why?
Rev: Bob Dylan, best American songwriter of the 20th century. Lou Reed, who made it possible for garage bands like us to exist. J Dilla, because he's the beat master. Otis Redding, one word: soul.
The Deli: All right, give us the rundown. Where all on this big crazy web can you be found?
Rev: We have a plethora of web pages. We can be found on Facebook, Twitter @revgusto, Soundcloud, Reverb Nation, and we just recently joined iTunes.
The Deli: Always go out on a high note. Any last words of wisdom for the Deli audience?
Rev: Our main goal is to enjoy ourselves and do what we love. We love to see people out to have fun along with us. We hope to be doing this for a while, so we hope The Deli can handle our meat.
Rev Gusto is:
Jerry Frederick
Sam Frederick
Quinn Hernandez
Peter Beatty
Shaun Crowley
There are plenty of opportunities to see Rev Gusto perform in the very near future. They’ll be playing tonight, January 3, at recordBar and tomorrow, January 4, at Jackpot. On Monday, January 28 they’ll be at Czar. Rev Gusto was also announced as one of the performers for the MidCoast Takeover fundraiser show on Saturday, February 16 at The Brick, along with Not A Planet and David Hasselhoff on Acid.
On The Beat with John Bersuch
(Photo by Todd Zimmer)
John Bersuch plays drums, raps, records music, paints, creates. The drummer of Thee Water MoccaSins tells us about his true musical passions, his creative outlets, and his love of whiskey. Bersuch will be playing on New Year's Eve with TWM at recordBar for a special celebration. Find out more about him; catch the beat right here!
--Michelle Bacon
On The Beat is an exclusive feature from The Deli Magazine-Kansas City that showcases many of the talented drummers in the Kansas City area.
On The Beat with John Bersuch
|
||||||||||
 |
||||||||||
On The Beat with John Bersuch
|
||||||||||
|
John Bersuch is undoubtedly one of the most eclectically creative individuals in Kansas City. He’s a musician, an artist, a sculptor, a sound engineer, an architect of haunted houses. He was one of the men behind Bacon Shoe, the experimental hip-hop “nerdcore” trio that crossed boundaries and conventional schools of thought. He’s also a drummer who has performed in a variety of local bands. Since he and his band Thee Water MoccaSins will be performing a special New Year’s Eve show, we catch up with him and his busy life. The Deli: How did the drums find you?
John Bersuch: My dad brought home a makeshift drum kit for me when I was about 12. I never took drum lessons as a kid, but eventually I went from being completely horrible to kind of all right. I would jam out with friends regularly, and one of my adult neighbors had a blues rock band that I would sit in with when their drummer couldn't make it.
The Deli: What other instruments did you dabble in?
JB: I took piano lessons and guitar lessons. I also recorded weird rap songs and skits on a little 4-track as well.
The Deli: What type of kit(s) do you use?
JB: Well I'm currently buying a C&C kit from Jake Cardwell piece by piece. I also have a small Gretsch Jazz kit, a 5-piece Pearl Export kit, a Sonor kit and a toy drumset that I enjoy using for certain songs/projects.
The Deli: Biggest influences?
JB: My earliest influences were The Dead Milkmen, N.W.A., Metallica, Molly McGuire, Ween, Craw, Beck, and too many more.
The Deli: Who are your favorite KC/Lawrence drummers?
JB: Well, Jason Gerken is on the top of my list for sure. Others include Brian Steever, Mike Myers, Chris Metcalf, Arnold Young, Kent Burnham, Ian Ballard, Chris Fuggitt, Kriss Ward, Jake Cardwell, and Ryan Shank. I know I'm leaving out a few important ones, but I can't name all of them I suppose.
The Deli: What bands have you performed in as a drummer?
JB: Minds Under Cover, Trench, Big Jeter, Trouble Junction, Forrest Whitlow, Olympic Size, Import/Export, (of) tree, Thee Water Moccasins.
The Deli: You create so many different moods with the sounds you create. What is your true musical passion?
JB: My main passion is recording songs. Starting with drums, keys, bass, or just a little duckbill tapping on a wind chime, and then building on it until the song is complete. I enjoy hearing a song back and know I played all the parts and did the vocals. That is part of the reason it's hard for me to leave the studio. It's a never-ending addiction. My newest solo album is very, very close to being finished.
The Deli: Playing music is not the only thing you do. You turn your home into a haunted house each year. You have a recording studio. You probably do a bunch of other stuff I have no idea about. So what keeps you busy when you're not playing?
JB: When I'm not playing, I like to create in other ways. It really doesn't matter what I'm making. Whatever inspires me at the moment. I enjoy oil painting, circuit bending, large wooden sculptures, etc., etc. I'm totally into hanging stuff from the ceiling now. There is gonna be a lot more of that coming up in the near future. I also take photos and make music videos. Sometimes I like to drink some whiskey. :)
The Deli: I know you’ve collaborated with a ton of local musicians, but are there any in particular you really enjoy working with?
JB: A few of my more recent favorite people to collaborate with include: Andrew Ashby, John Ferguson, Jeremy Cerda, Kian Byrne, Sterling Holman, Chris Fuggitt, Ian Ballard, and Jeffy Williams. I'd like to do more collaborating with Mac Lethal. He freestyled on a beat I made awhile ago and it'd be fun to do some more of that. Also, I'd like to work with Brandon Draper from Organic Proof. I'd like to hear what kind of drumming he'd pull out with some of my crazy looping. I run all of my instruments into a Kaoss pad and then into a Line 6 delay pedal. It allows me to create really fast loops with the bass guitar that would be otherwise physically impossible to play.
The Deli: What are you looking forward to most about the NYE show?
JB: I'm looking forward to seeing Billy Smith again. Each time is a treat. Also, I'm going to do hundreds of jello shots (not really). This show is going to be a blast!! Playing with Thee Water MoccaSins is always fun. Those guys are pros and I'm lucky to be a part of it.
Bersuch will be playing with Thee Water MoccaSins on New Year’s Eve—Monday, December 31—at recordBar. They’ll be joined by The Golden Republic and a very special guest. Champagne toast and party favors will be included. Tickets are $12 and available at this link. Bersuch will also be doing another show with Bacon Shoe in mid-January. Stay tuned for details.
--Michelle Bacon
|
Bacon Shoe
 Photo by Todd Zimmer
Thee Water MoccaSins - From The Rivers of Missouri and The Banks of Fear
|
Editor's Pick: Top 10 Albums/Songs of 2012
2012 has been a fantastic year for local music. With a couple hundred albums released in several genres, The KC/Lawrence music scene continues to make an impression both locally and regionally. 2012 brought national attention to Kansas City music in USA Today, who featured prominent local bands at MidCoast Takeover, the annual SXSW showcase spearheaded by Midwest Music Foundation. The Deli Magazine recognized this showcase and allowed us to launch a Kansas City branch of the publication, among the ranks of larger musical cities like NYC, Nashville, and Los Angeles.
The following lists are top 10 albums and songs of the year as ranked by editor Michelle Bacon.
Albums
1. Thee Water MoccaSins – From the Rivers of Missouri and the Banks of Fear
2. The Grisly Hand – Western Ave (EP)
3. Hidden Pictures – Rainbow Records
5. Schwervon! – Courage
6. Molly Picture Club – Molly Picture Club
7. The Caves – Duplexiaville
8. The Empty Spaces – Party Line (EP)
9. The Latenight Callers – Easy Virtues (EP)
10. Ghosty – Ghosty
Songs
1. “Ride” – Tiny Horse
2. “Diablo Diablo” – Thee Water MoccaSins
3. “The Mad Season” – The Latenight Callers
4. “Coming On” – Antennas Up
5. “Fanclub” – Molly Picture Club
6. “Give It Away Or Lose It” – The Caves
7. “Holidays Are Nice and Warm” – The Empty Spaces
8. “Cyclone” – Schwervon!
9. “Blue Light” – The Quivers
10. “Lips” – In Back of A Black Car
Finally, I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has helped out the local music community this year, be it through creating music, watching shows, buying albums, engineering, running sound, booking shows, managing or promoting bands, running venues, etc. And special thank you to Midwest Music Foundation for making The Deli KC possible, as well as everyone who has contributed their time and talents to this e-publication. This would be impossible to do without all of you. Here's to a prosperous and musical 2013!
--Michelle Bacon
Michelle is editor of The Deli Magazine - Kansas City and plays drums in Deco Auto, Drew Black & Dirty Electric, and drums/bass in Dolls on Fire. Her favorite breakfast food is biscuits and gravy.
Album review: Six Percent - The Years (EP)
(Photo by Todd Zimmer)
In case it slipped under your oh-so-rad hipster radar, Six Percent’s story is worth mentioning. For starters, they’ve been making music since I was taking sex education in the 8th grade. They had embraced the ways of the ‘90s, rap-rocking in venues with the likes of The Urge, 2 Skinnee J’s and Kottonmouth Kings. Following a couple released, and changing lineups, as many times as Taylor Swift changes boyfriends, Six Percent officially disbanded in 2001.
The band regrouped in 2010 for a one-night-only show. Nearly 600 people welcomed them back. For obvious reasons, this caught the attention of several promoters in the 816. They landed a spot opening for the Smashing Pumpkins at 96.5’s Buzz Beach Ball show. With the swell of attention and support, the band opted to stay active and record.
The Years EP is the result of that twisty and impressive road.
Opening with “Broadway Riot,” the band combines middle-finger guitar rock with pop-punk ska sounds. Kicking open the door with an impressive drum and feedback intro before slamming into the introductory lyrics, the band shows no sign of flinching passively or modestly returning to the Kansas City music scene. The collective slings references to the 816 like protesters throw rocks in riots. Discussions surround both Broadway and a midtown breakdown throughout the mix. With hints of pre-gothic My Chemical Romance, The Used, and Billy Talent, riffs fly and angst swells throughout the cut. Three minutes and fifty-two seconds into the release and the band has set the record straight that this isn’t a shallow reunion tour. Six Percent still has plenty to say.
“Old Routines” and “Dying World” shift into a more polished and radio-friendly Blink-182 (post-Box Car Racer) sound. The first of the two tracks features a fantastic horns-vs-guitars breakdown, incomparable to anything I have experienced before in music. Butting heads yet meshing together, the song takes a sort of sweet-and-sour approach to its sound. “Dying World” follows suit, fading out with a haunting outro and catching structure that reminds me of the releases of Drive-Thru and Vagrant Records during their prime. However the song also boasts the EP’s only (noticeable) error with a drum breakdown at the 1 minute and 20 second mark. The band cannot, however, singularly shoulder the blame for the stumble. The error should have been caught in both production and mixing. Sadly, it slipped under the radar and into reality.
Regardless, it is little more than a crack on a canvas of a local masterpiece.
Closing with two faster-paced numbers, “Not Today” and “Live Out Loud,” the band shows their chops with impressive guitar work and addicting hook creations. The album’s last track leaves the listener exposed to the band’s ability to apply elements of arena rock to its resume. Its often driven and energetic sound seems to swell around this worthwhile release, but don’t for a second question this album’s ability to kick in your teeth.
Therefore, my advice to anyone willing to give The Years EP a good, solid spin is to remember that quality taste in music is secondary to a quality dental plan. You’re going to need it, because this band isn’t fucking around.
--Joshua Hammond
| After stints drumming for both The Afternoons and Jenny Carr and the Waiting List in the Lawrence/Kansas City music scene, Joshua Hammond found his footing as a music journalist, launching the national publication Popwreckoning. After running the show as Editor in Chief for 6 years, Hammond stepped away from the reigns to freelance for other publications like Under The Gun Review and High Voltage Magazine. This shift allowed the adequate amount of time for him to write passionately, allow the Kansas City Royals to break his heart on a daily basis and spoon his cats just enough that they don't shred his vinyl. |