THE MOST BEAUTIFUL LOSERS
A drinkin’ band with a rock-n-roll problem, The Most Beautiful Losers began in the Spring of 2002 in the blue collar factory town of Canton, Ohio and have had their muddy boots full on the throttle ever since. A brawling, hard drinkin’ power trio that is dead set on kicking your ass one minute and making you hum their songs the next, the Losers quickly began to make a name for themselves based on their awesome live shows. Influenced by old time country music, punk and southern rock ( and just about any other hard drinking artist), the Losers found themselves playing for the “common folk”. If you have ever found yourself spending all of your money at the bar and crying in your beer about a lost love or that good job you just lost at the factory after failing your piss test, then The Most Beautiful Losers are definitely for you. Underdogs through and through, they know where you’re coming from man, because they’ve been there too.
The Most Beautiful Losers are Brad Belcher, Joe Waller and Chris Bentley
'''The Beginning''' - FALLING APART AND SPILLING THE BOTTLE
The early days of The Most Beautiful Losers were full of drunken dreams and frequent trips to Detroit. While working together at an Art supply store Brad Belcher and Chris Bentley began tossing around the idea of starting a band together. Bentley had been in a slew of bands over the years, most notably a powerful doom/goth band based out of Detroit called PLASTIK ACID and the soft-core Canton Ohio band CRESCENDO. Bentley had begun to write more straight forward rock songs that were country tinged towards the end of his tenure in CRESCENDO and was looking to move in that direction, having been heavily influenced over the years by such artists as THE REPLACEMENTS, UNCLE TUPELO and SLOBBERBONE. Belcher a confirmed deadhead had followed the GRATEFUL DEAD around the country on numerous tours selling t-shirts, juice and whatever else he needed to get by and was pursuing a Fine Arts degree at a local college. They decided to start a band with the idea of it being a nice little country band, but that quickly mutated into a full blown rock band. "We wrote about 10 songs in the sweltering spring heat of a little shed I was living in at the time and then fleshed them all out at Brad's house, after he finally let us start practicing there." Bently says. "As we got more songs we recruited more and more band members. I asked Leslie Porter to come sing on some stuff with me, she had been in a previous band with me called CRESCENDO and I knew she had a great voice." Other early members included Ron Strawder on lead guitar and Aron Rue on the drums. The band quickly wrote a bunch of songs and soon were playing shows like crazy. They decided they needed to record a demo of some sort and went to The WOODSHED RECORDING STUDIO in Detroit Michigan, owned by Tim Pak of ANGRY RED PLANET fame and who Bentley had went to before, while in PLASTIK ACID. "We went there 3 different times, I think, and had some decent recordings come out of it. We had alot of fun and alot of great times, but in the end it was just me and Brad that would stay LOSERS." Strawder was the first to leave to be replaced by the wild man Eric Strouble who lasted about 6 months in the band and then Rue bowed out. The LOSERS went through a revolving door of guitar players and drummers before settling on local cover band drummer, Todd Weekly. Porter decided to leave the band soon after that and quickly started a new band with Rue, Strouble and Strawder called SWEET SPOT.
'''LETS GET ON THE ROAD'''
Having went through much upheaval in the band and stripped down to a power trio with Weekly now on the drums, Belcher and Bentley focused on playing out of town as much as possible. They would spend the next year playing all over the midwest and recording their debut album 2006's PLAYIN' WITH HEARTS at the Woodshed. Soon however tensions began to arise between them and Weekly was out. The LOSERS, as they were lovingly referred to by their fans, were once again without a drummer. This would last for 6 months, but that didn't stop them from recording with studio drummer, Nick Marko and self-releasing the EP, JUST KILLER in April 2007.
In September 2007 Joe Waller, formerly of DISFUNCTIONAL RAY joined the LOSERS as their drummer and the band has since played all over the midwest and continued to win the hearts of die-hard fans all over.
THE EMERALD LIZARDS
Combining 60's inspired garage rock, surf twang, bluesy swagger, and manic punk energy, Chicago's own Emerald Lizards have arrived to re-inject the Roll into Rock!
Howling frontman Ayman Samman has his roots in the deep underground of Egyptian Heavy Metal. He played his first concert in front of 7000 rock-starved metal maniacs in Cairo, with only $3 and a free pack of cigarettes from the concert's sponsors to his name! Between banging his head like a man possessed, and evading the ire of fundamentalists, Ayman cultivated his love of all genres of Rock and Blues. He came to America in the mid-nineties where he fronted two Chicago Metal outfits, Sign of Chaos and Signal Intent, before joining the Lizard fold. The Emerald Lizards provide him the perfect opportunity to show off his vocal gifts and crowd galvanizing stage presence.
Charismatic guitar slinger Chip Medema's eclectic passion for disparate greats such as Led Zeppelin, the Beatles, Elvis, John Lee Hooker and Duane Eddy, has been filtered through his twisted imagination to emerge under his fingers, providing a backdrop for his technicolor blues.
Enigmatic wildman Brian Gay wears his punk/indie credentials on his sleeve, having swung his axe in such bands as Government Issue, Savage Beliefs, The Watchmen, Buzzmuscle, and The Indicators. Though seemingly mild mannered, on stage he explodes with rabid intensity.
Ladies love "Chairman" Jason Adams, who provides the smooth and steady bottom end that makes it easy for them to move their feet. Jason also blows a mean harp from time to time. Besides laying it down with the Lizards, Jason is also an accomplished purveyor of improv comedy, performing regularly with the Chicago improv group Sciatica.
Wisecracking skin pounder Josh "the fro" Smith credits his manic drum style to a steady diet of Zeppelin, the Who, CCR, Pantera, Metallica, corn nuts, and chewing tobacco. Josh and Chip were high school buddies, and shared their first band experiences all the while making fun of the questionable musical tastes of their classmates.
Chip, Brian, and Jason initially started the band on a whim, in order to play some Link Wray covers at an open mic night. However, it soon became apparent that they wanted to create something more permanent. Josh and Ayman round out the ensemble and add the extra "something" that makes the whole greater than the sum of the parts.
Look for them tearing the roof off of a venue near you
ROBOTS ON CRACK
"If Robots On Crack was a mailman it would be the mailman that smiles and waves at you," long-standing Robots fan Bill Anderson said. "They don't just get the job done but they make you glad that you were there to see them.....I think there is something mystifying in the fact that they can make the music and the content completely secondary to the overall performance. I like that kind of nonsensical style that is a really worthwhile paradox," Anderson said. "I think they're all out of their minds, also."
THE REGRETS
The Regrets have been rocking the greater Chicagoland area since 2006. Made up of two dune buggy champions, a steeplechaser, and a guy named Nick who flexes his telepathy at the Hollywood Grill; The Regrets formed an immediate bond while frequenting local bars, bar & grills, taps, taprooms, taverns, inns, watering holes, and saloons. They soon found that they had more than a love of libations in common and this is the result.
COWBOY MESSIAH
"Look for Tantric Sex disguised as pure horniness, dreams of young girls where there are none and disillusions of grandeur. Pick up a six-pack, smoke that thing and dig in." COWBOY MESSIAH is three guys from detroit. Andy: guitar, lead vocals. formerly of Empirical; Necro Mulligan; More Monkey Than Man; (with many stage, screen, and voice acting credits), (ask to see his super-soaker) ~ j: bass, backing vocals. same guy from Blue J 707; formerly of Euphoric Conniption; Rocktard; Steel Neil and the Memphis Skullfuckers; Necro Mulligan; More Monkey Than Man; Waking Tarn. ~ Tommy Lee Torgitron: rhythm master, harmonica breather and all sorts of other wonderful crap. still in his original package.
SALT MINERS
The Salt Miners have been performing their own high energy brand of stringband music from their home in Detroit throughout the Midwest and beyond for the last five years. They get their inspiration from old school bluegrass, traditional folk, rock, medicine show bands, old country, punk and blues. They have been carving out a rowdy niche for themselves by serving up rollicking live shows, and on festival stages, in bar rooms, living rooms and around campfires everywhere they go, they pull the crowd into their performance with a gritty, honest sound.
CHERI ARNETT
Cheri Arnett's strong and smoky vocals, dynamic stage presence, and unique songwriting style are all part of what helps define her as ''not your run of the mill singer/songwriter''. Her candid lyrics bring you into the psyche of a woman who has overcome a lifetime of trials and tribulations, love and loss, and interesting relationships with friends and family. Cheri also has a great sense of humor that puts a fun and uplifting twist into her repertoire. She can put a smile on your face just as quickly as she can put a tear in your eye. You will most likely walk away from a Cheri Arnett show reflecting upon where you've been, all the people you've loved, and where you're going from here.
CHRIS BENTLEY and the WRETCHED LOVESICK BASTARDS
Chris Bentley from THE MOST BEAUTIFUL LOSERS solo project with various people who are "The Wretched Lovesick Bastards" recorded an album called "MOONSTARZ TEN". Chris decided to do a solo album because he had a bunch of sad songs that were, in his words "steadily eating away at my heart and I knew that me and Brad didn't want to release a MOST BEAUTIFUL LOSERS album of all acoustic-y sad depresso songs so I decided to do a solo album. I guess in a way, it is more of an exorcism than anything. Sad. Very sad songs.
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