Gravy - DRUMS
Whitey - BASS n STUFF
...................................
As told by BUSTER FRIENDLY:
BIO (or why Whitey fled
the slumbering gnat-plagued backwater of Moose Hills, Saskatchewan to become
a rising celestial body in the Rock and Roll firmament of Edmonton)
"I wasnt so fond of the fishing, or eating the fish, since I left
my wife down in the pond. I know it sounds stupid, but I still think shes
out to get me.
"I took a heapin helpin of hoopin on account of that
swamp witch, but, as I sees it, I still has my art. Granted, the ass done fell
out of my last pair of pants, but still
life.
"Then ma dog done run off with the milkman (nothing sacred in the Devils
Greenish Acre) that was it for me in that broke-dick joint."
IMAGE
With chrome-plated sideburns and an ass like a diesel stack belching righteous
blackened fury, the band is as cuddly as homemade stuffed animals fashioned
of steel wool and bearing razor-wire smiles.
CREDO
With a gleam in his eye, feral yet knowing, such as one might expect on a Dalai
Lamprey, Whitey explains, "I just want my fans to hurt like I do."
Q&A
On the subject of the much ballyhooed banana fixation, Whitey is mum and a touch
hostile, "Lets leave fruit outta this!"
As for pants, he remains defiant despite innumerable public indecency citations.
"If Donald Duck dont need them, why should I?"
DRUMMER
"I dont play the drums, I hit them
with anything thats
handy." Sure enough, when confronted by hecklers one night at the Skyview
Estates Community Hall, he used their skulls as tom-toms for an extended encore
performance of Lucifer Sam.
While the front man crackles and pops, the back man simmers relentlessly to
the rollicking boil like an ancient cast iron cauldron brimming with witch tit
broth, newt fangs, eel and rattler pedentia, North Saharan clitorai, and stewed
prunes to help it all pass.
RECIPE for WHITEY FIXINS
1. Heat oil till smoking
2. Add whole spices: flakes of Rock cliché, Blues peppercorns, Heavy
Metal filings
3. Stir wantonly
4. Fold in diced ham and cheesy rinds
5. Skat until the whole is Funked out thoroughly
6. Garnish with fermented Hippy fronds
7. Chill out
8. Never serve
Gravy - DRUMS
Whitey - BASS n STUFF
...................................
Whitey Houston was originally
a poorly drawn comic that drawn back in 1996 as a joke to make a quick buck.
Only one or two were ever published since I drew the beer-swilling semi-autobiographical
character without the hinderance of pants or undergarments. Needless to say,
the editors (or was it the board) that oversaw Our Voice weren't terribly amused
and it was all officially SHITCANNED.
Both Gravy and I had been playing in bands throughout the 90's. We once played
together back in ole '96, when he couldn't play his way out of a damp paper
sack. Much had transpired since though and by '98 we finally were rockin' along
with Brent Oliver in Slow Fresh Oil.
For three trying years SFO battled evil, recorded haphazzardly (intentionally
haphazzardly mind you) and played to tens and tens of people. It ultimately
imploded in a train-wreck hell-ride show in Calgary but the stage had been set
and seeds sewn for Whitey to rock the proverbial Casbah. The first actual Whitey
show was a Telus (?!?) Fundraiser at which Gravy played with red telephone handsets
instead of sticks. Kids danced, parents stood with mouths agape while the crazies
took turns ranting' over some intense phone drumming.
The indie-rock approach that had been hallmark SFO was being quickly drowned
out by the stereophonic roar of the bass guitar and the ever present pugelistic
trap stylings of THE CRUSHER. He was once heard to say "I don't play the
drums, I hit the drums." And Crush those drums he did (and still does).
The slow songs were being SHITCANNED for faster ones which were in-turn not
fast enough so those were SHITCANNED for even faster ones until we finally arrived
at the present.
As our pal Frenchy would say ... KEEP ON ROCKIN'
...................................
Whitey Houston is an Edmonton based rock and roll duo comprised of Bassist/vocalist
Lyle Bell (sometimes known as Whitey) and Drummer Rob Hoffart (always known
as Gravy). The rock duo have known each other since the mid 90s, playing
together frequently and finally making the decision to continue as a 2-piece
after the disintegration of their previous effort Slow Fresh Oil in the fall
of 2000. Already complementary as a rhythm section, the two revamped their set-up
and sound in an attempt to maximize their sonic possibilities. Their efforts
yielded a previously untapped musical synergy anchored by Bells inventive
stereophonic bass chording and Hoffarts increasingly blistering tempos.
It was pure, feral rock and roll complete with the right mix of swagger, humour,
and arm windmilling. Fueled by both Bell and Gravys audiophile and vinyl
loyalist backgrounds, the new sound pulled from diverse influences, from the
garage soul of The Pretty Things and The Sonics to the arena rock pomp of Thin
Lizzy, early AC-DC and Motorhead. Obscure 60s R&B screamers, 77
punk and 80s metal, all were absorbed into the mix that would produce
Whitey Houstons particular brand of frenzied rock n roll.
-Chico T. Sanchez