Pupils the Pioneer Valley over may be lapping up these dog days of summer, however fleeting they may be. But as their Hannah Montana lunchboxes gather dust, local singer/songwriter Henning Ohlenbusch is hereby declaring that his School For The Dead is officially in session.
In lieu of a traditional bell, headmaster/bandleader Henning says he's utilizing the occasion of the band's freshly minted album, A Telephone For Two, to signal the masses.
"It's our first release since 2004," he admits. "I'm not really sure why it took so long other than us doing solo projects, a Fawns album, Sitting Next To Brian and a Bourgeois Heroes disc in between. But we started last August and didn't expect to wrap up until October—and things definitely proceeded faster than expected."
With Telephone assembled and operational, it seems a quick arithmetic lesson was next on the School For The Dead docket. While Ohlenbusch says he's still perfecting a formula wherein the square root of the new disc divided by the existing back catalogue equals exponential greatness, he is fairly certain that his band's performance at The Elevens this Friday will be "at least one better" than a similar show they played in '07.
"Last year, we played on 07/07/07, and this year, it's 08/08/08," he laughs. "So we have eight bands on the bill, including Mark Mulcahy, Spanish For Hitchhiking, Spouse and The Winterpills [the last also just finished recording their latest studio effort]. The event begins at 8 p.m. and we'll be playing music from 1988 in between acts."
Following this weekend's crazy eights engagement, Ohlenbusch and bandmates Ken Maiuri, Tony Westcott, Brian Marchese and Max Germer have already amassed an August concert calendar that includes stints at Look Park (Aug. 26 for the annual Transperformance series) and the Cape. That said, the following night, Aug. 9, the School-boys face what appears to be their first suspension of the season.
They were supposed to play the Valley Free Radio anniversary show at Noho's Pines Theater that day on a bill rounded out by The Alchemystics, Black Rebels, The Equalites and more, but as VFR board member Mo Ringey revealed, that show was recently postponed due to "scheduling anomalies."
"We are looking toward September or October for the new date," Ringey adds. "The good news logistically is that admission to the show was free with a VFR membership, so people with those memberships—and we have all their names and numbers—are welcome to refunds or can simply hold on for the show."
In other similarly suspended news, the Freestyle Invasion originally slated for July 26 at the MassMutual—and highlighted in this very column two days prior—has been postponed until April 25, 2009. Tickets already purchased will also be valid for the new show. Refunds are also available at point of purchase.
Meanwhile, in the wake of the makeups, two other popular series continue to barrel full steam ahead this month.
The first emanates from Six Flags New England and has featured national acts including Day 26, Raven and Boyz II Men in recent weeks. This Thursday, Aug. 7, "Low"-man Flo Rida continues the parks' Starburst Thursday night concert series; the following week, Aug. 14, platinum-popper Gavin DeGraw wraps things up. Admission to both shows is free with your park admission. For more info, kindly point your browser to www.sixflags.com.
In the area's latest Battle of The Bands series—waging war weekly at Louie B's in Southwick through September—hometown favorites The Suspectz and Vermont's Stonewall have (so far) emerged victorious. And while one of the event's organizers, Dave Mech, says he has been amazed at the miles some acts will travel for a shot at the grand prize—a demo recording contract with Rudy Records and legendary producer/engineer Mark Wolfson (STP/Ice-T)—he adds that there's still room for more. To enter your band, simply visit gignation.com or mscharts.com.
Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, P.O. Box 427, Somers, CT 06071; fax to (860) 698-9373 or email Garycarra@aol.com.
