Metro Pulse/Music/Eye on the Scene

Casualties of Rock

We're sad to report that Knoxville's heavy music scene lost two prime movers last week. Jed Lundin, 20, lead guitarist of FEED, was killed in an alcohol-related automobile accident. Lundin was the passenger of a car that struck a tree, killing both him and the driver. At presstime, there was no information available about the future of the band. Let's hope the surviving members can keep it going.

Christian metal heavy hitters Rachel's Mourning lost their drummer, Eddie Campbell, 23, under as-of-yet unexplained circumstances. "It was not a suicide, it was an accidental death," says Rachel's bassist A.J. Caulineau. "You probably want more details but we don't know much more than that. That's just what we were told by the police and his family. One good thing is that we originally thought it was suicide, but they ruled it accidental death." Rachel's Mourning is continuing by playing its scheduled gigs with a fill-in drummer, Matt McAllister of Seedless.

"We're already working again," says Calineau. "We didn't want to take any time off because we wanted to try to put this behind us, not that we want to forget Eddie." The band will be playing this Friday at Boogie's.

Fans of both bands met at The Prince on Wednesday, April 26 to pay tribute to Lundin and Campbell. The evening featured acoustic performances by members of Dreve and Galaxie. "It was just a remembrance of both guys and a lot of people came out," says Calineau. "We're still in shock."

Local CD Review

The Red Scare
Capillary Lockdown (Troubleman Records)

It's kind of misleading to treat The Red Scare's Capillary Lockdown purely as a local release. Sure, the band is Knoxville-based, but The Red Scare is more likely to be found performing on their wide-ranging tours. And their sound is far from what one would expect of an indigenous band.

Recorded at Virginia's Inner Ear Studios by Dischord Records' producer Don Zientara, Capillary Lockdown is a wonderful example of just where hardcore music can go when it is stripped of macho posturings, sloganeering, and metal cliches. The band's first full-length release is proof positive that the hardcore sounds are even more powerful when tempered with accuracy, focus, and a bit of restraint.

If your idea of hardcore is the Victory Records stable, then The Red Scare is probably not for you. The band offers a mix of screamo, DC sounds, an occasional math rock tendency, and lots of rage and heart. Hardcore or no, the album could also fit into the art rock category. The opaque lyrics could be interpreted a number of ways—and that probably suits The Red Scare just fine. These guys (and girl) seem too smart to spell out anything for their fans.

The band is preparing for yet another exhausting tour this summer. And, according to a recent interview in Maximum Rock 'n' Roll, they're only going to be playing house shows. This might be a hard one to pull off, because the band is getting rave reviews in the fanzine world. With all the buzz happening, I think they'll soon find that there aren't many living rooms big enough for them anymore.

Wild Nights Are Callin'

Remember all those crazy parties at 1827 Highland Ave., the ones that became the stuff of local rock 'n' roll legend and even got written up in some national magazines? Well, don't worry kids. Those who may have missed out before will have the opportunity to be in on the social event of the season. The yearly event is going to happen in the new millennium, though not in the same place.

The 8th Annual 1827 Band Bash will be held this Saturday, May 6, at a warehouse near the Fourth & Gill neighborhood. Scheduled for 9 p.m., a tentative roster of bands includes Ramblin' Roy (featuring ex-V-roys Mic and Paxton), The Shine, 30 Amp Fuse, Kid Snack, Mustard, and Skeyebone. Look on area telephone poles or listen to the Cock Rock Hour for exact directions to this legendary event.

"This is in the tradition of 1827, even though it's in a different place," says host (and Cock Rock DJ) Derek Senter. "We'll be talking it up on the show this Friday, so listen in if you want to know how to get there. It'll be wild!"

—Zippy "Screamo" McDuff