Red Vienna: Walking Through The Cracks Of Endless Time

Red Vienna is a band based out Vancouver BC; Vancouver is a hotbed for rock’n’roll in this country of ours that is matched only by Toronto. In the 80’s you had Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance. In the 90’s you had Gob, Sarah McLachlan, Age of Electric and The Black Halos.

Soon everywhere the kids will cry for Red Vienna. This is much different in the sense intelligent kids cry because of Nickelback. Red Vienna is a good thing… a great thing.

On Saturday March 26th 2010 Adam Becvare’s Chicago based rock band the LustKillers were in Saskatoon. Bass player Denyss McKnight and vocalist Becvare both previously of The Black Halo’s advised me that old band mates Jahmeel Russell and Robbie Zgaljic had a new project on the go called Red Vienna. This excited me, perhaps more than it should have. The next afternoon when I arrived back in Regina I checked to see if it was online yet. It wasn’t. The Sunday after LK’s Regina show however, I had facebook and myspace requests. It seemed to be timed perfectly. See I am as you may or may not know a huge fan of The Black Halo’s. A HUGE part of that is Zgaljic. See Robbie Z has always been one of my favourite drummers. He is the only drummer I like to watch as much is Shannon Larkin of Godsmack. Most drummers are just there. Not Rob. He is an incredible player that hit’s extremely hard, his machine gun snare rolls are out of this world and he carries himself very well. He drives the band and keeps your attention all at the same time. He still manages to stay grounded and is one of the kindest people ever.

Jahmeel is no slouch himself. The bass lines Jahmeel punches out on the record are solid as !@#$. While he is not only a talented bass player he is also the vocalist for this new sensation. The songs that Rob and Jam Master Jahmeel (that’s what I will call him from now on) have written for their self titled EP are sick! It’s hard to describe the sound because it’s really fresh, fun and rockin’ yet it has an earthy, atmospheric kind of contemplative sound that is still very familiar to the listener. From a thought Rob and Jahmeel had in the fall of ’08 to working on the first song “Reprise” in mid ’09, it was well worth the wait. The boys were accompanied by Devin Boquist and Mark Perry on guitars that solidify the bands line up. Red Vienna has definitely created a unique record that they can call their own. You will find yourself very comfortable quickly with it. The first two days after buying the record online at http://redvienna.bandcamp.com on April 6th were spent with the album on repeat, and really listening to it.

Photo by Gucio Photography

The first track “The Best Words” Jahmeel owns from the start really ripping on the bass. With his gentle sounding voice backed by a tight rhythm section “The Best Words” is an excellent start to the record. Again the second song on the record “Low Lights” gets thumping right away. The band is definitely defining their sound early and it works for them. “Low Lights” has a bang on chorus that I am sure to be the early single. I predict this to be the crowd favourite as far as pop goes on the record. The ringing guitars and radio friendly melodies appease the ears that put you in a state of complete peace and bliss. The epic anthemic rock song entitled “Victoria Victoria” crushes from start to finish with it’s guitar buzz and steady drum. I can only picture a gang of young men steadily approaching on this number. Run they look serious! The band leads you back to their gentle atmospheric sound by track four. “The Long Walk” is that song that when you hear live will be the song the band captivates you with. Wait and see, it will be that powerful live. It’s powerful enough on it’s own but wait and see live… mark my words. This song is going to be “the moment” you fell in love with the band live. Lastly “Reprise” is a brooding/melancholy song that Jahmeel wrote reflecting a friend who had recently passed away. “We don’t think about death except for inside jokes we know. With our arms around each other, playing songs we know from show to show. Our glass eyes are cracked and the tears begin to flow. Goodbye to our snowman friend, goodbye to the winter cold. I see my friend at funeral, he’s someone I used to know” laments Russell. The crescendo that is built by about half way through will make your heart stop. It’s a hard song to listen to in that Jahmeel’s heart felt thoughts for his friend vividly come across in the song.

This is the best thing I have heard in recent memory. Red Vienna probably the best thing I have heard since Winnipeg’s “Ripperz” a couple years back.

Stunning effort fellas!

Cheers Rockers!

http://redvienna.bandcamp.com
http://www.myspace.com/redvienna

After Black Halos Burn Out They Often Burn Brighter

In the April 2010 Spin magazine article in which Gerard Way (My Chemical Romance) meets with Stooges legend Iggy Pop, Iggy says the following:

“There are people who live rock’n’roll all the time, but those people don’t last long. After I finish with you guys I am going to feed a cat.”

This has a lot to do with countless bands, but it was probably the greatest downfall of one of my favourite bands in the world.

Some people live it and some people fake it; either way this is detrimental to the people portraying this as well as the bands that back these types of people. Being rock’n’roll all the time was definitely a hardship that Vancouver’s monochrome glam punk-rock’n’rollers felt on a regular basis.

The Black Halos were a band in which though hard work, relentless dedication to their craft, a “DYI” attitude and solid songwriting produced four records fans could rave about with famed producer Jack Endino (Nirvana Soundgarden).

The Black Halo’s were a punk band that formed in 1993 by vocalist Billy Hopeless, guitarists Rich Jones and Jay Millette, bass player Matt Camirand and drummer Robbie Zgaljic. The band’s self-titled debut record was released in 1999 and by 2001 the band’s sophomore smash ‘The Violent Years’ was released.

It was on the Canadian tour for the Violent Years that I was introduced to this band. A couple friends and I went to the show at The State, which is now the Distrikt. This venue has a balcony upstairs with a view that allows you to watch the band from three sides of the stage. The room was pretty full so we went to the balcony and watched the show close to stage left. The band was likely very good. However, whoever hired the sound guy obviously hired Helen Keller because the sound was awful. I wasn’t entirely sold on this band as of yet… their sound anyway. That being said, the show was fantastic. The stage presence was amazing and the band banged it out. One member caught my eye specifically. That member was drummer Robbie Zgaljic. The man was intense from the first second right up until the last. He pounded the kit and had boat loads of charisma just in playing. You got this feeling that he was leading the whole band from the back. I left that night impressed with the stage show and the people but wanted to actually “hear” it. Soon after, my friend played me the Violent Years and I was sold. I was like “This is what I was supposed to hear!?” I played that record nonstop while I thought the band had called it quits for the next few years.

Although a lot of people love the Violent Years and the Rich Jones era Black Halos (so do I), it was the band’s third record ‘Alive Without Control’ that sealed them as one of the best bands in Canada for me. It was during this time that the best Halos line up would come together for me. This line up would consist of Billy, Robbie and Jay. However, after going through several guitarists and bass players, Denyss McKnight would join on bass and Adam Becvare would enter as the lead guitar player. Becvare was asked to do a US tour but was unable to partake due to his obligations to his own band the Lustkillers and the Halos would struggle. In Aug ’04 Becvare would fire his drummer and hop on board with the Black Halos for a tour with American hardcore band Zeke.

Shortly after this tour, AWC would take shape in 2005. It was already half written when the Adam joined. The band finished it after the Zeke tour. The band got everything they could onto that record, including organ, keys, pianos, hand claps, guest gang vocals, tambourine and even a guest solo from Rontrose of the Supersuckers on “Last Call At The Toothless Saloon.” Jay, Denyss, Adam and Rob really went to town writing on that record.

This would be the last we would see of Jay. The ups and downs of the Halos would prove to be something he didn’t want anymore and it was time to pursue other music ventures. Denyss would write for the next record but we would not see him live in this formation again either. Hired guns would enter as replacements: Johnny Stewart on rhythm guitar and Jahmeel Russell on bass.

‘We Are Not Alone,’ the band’s last record came out in 2008. For seven days straight Denyss, Adam, and Rob would work from noon till 6pm writing songs. Rob, a drummer once featured in Modern Drummer magazine, hits so hard that it forced the band to play loud just to get over it. This comes across crushingly beautiful live. Unfortunately, Adam states that is when he lost some hearing. Denyss, the youngest member of the bunch, has the ability to make new rock songs while Adam would make them more Halos’ type songs, Clash-like if you will.

The second time Rob asked Adam to join the band he told Adam that if he didn’t join then the Halo’s were over. Adam knew what the band needed. He had the contacts and experience, but most importantly he had a fan’s view. Adam had followed the band since 1999. That being said, Rob would not only be the backbone of the songs but of the band as well. Rob drove, booked, took on all the finances, all the debt and rehearsal space. It seems to me that Robbie Z was the heart of the Black Halos. I remember one show here in Regina where the turnout was poor and I apologized that our city sucked so badly. Rob just replied “I am just glad you guys showed up.” He seemed happy to just be doing it. Rob seems to be a real genuine, sincere and excellent human being.

On St. Patrick’s Day of ’08 in Montreal, thieves would break into the band’s trailer and steal all their gear and merchandise: records,shirts… everything. Immediately after this there was a tour that Adam prearranged for Europe. The band rented gear, a van and driver there and it was good timing to focus efforts on digging them out of a hole. The final show would be in Spain in June of ’08. Two weeks later Adam was back home in Chicago playing with his other band, the Lustkillers. Billy Hopeless didn’t go to the press to make it official until September of ’09.

Egos, infighting and pissy attitudes of some members would ultimately be the bands demise. Regardless, this band made some of the greatest records Canada has ever seen, with some of the most talent members and staff in the world.

I was really sad that this band that I loved so much had disbanded when I heard the news in September of ’09 but had known for some time in my heart. That being said, the Halos are shining brighter than ever in new bands. Jay Millette is writing, recording and touring with a new band called the Darlings Of Chelsea that will save Canadian Rock N Roll. I just spent a weekend hanging with Adam and the Lustkillers while on their tour though Canada. This included a guest appearance from the one and only Denyss Mcknight on bass. Denyss has a new project in the works that we will have to stay tuned for. Robbie has an alternative/indie rock band Red Vienna that has just released brand new songs on iTunes this month. I can tell you that the Red Vienna tunes are so great that I listened to them for two days straight with no breaks. AMAZING.

This article is dedicated to the band, as they gave us a decade of music though their blood,sweat and tears: especially Robbie for his dedication. If it were not for him we likely would only have two records to play over and over instead of four. Rob, I am so relieved to hear you are back behind that kit.

Black Halos - Three Sheets To The Wind


http://www.myspace.com/darlingsofchelsea
http://www.myspace.com/lustkillers
http://www.myspace.com/redvienna