Experiencing technical difficulties, we apologize for the delay…..

               So guess what I did this week? Thus far I’ve gotten a super cute hair cut, gone shopping, tried and failed to dye my hair back to its natural color, gone to church, gone to work, got hit on by a homeless guy….

                Ok hopefully by now you’re asking yourself “what the hell is she doing?” because I’m running out of stuff to babble about. I’m trying to make a point to my dear sweet boyfriend. To be fair he doesn’t even know there is a point to be made. I’m just sitting here trying to write and getting frustrated. So sit back and enjoy the rant.

                You see when I first started this thing he said to me, “we would love you to write about us, but Kayte, there’s not much to write about.” I thought ok valid point. It’s not like you guys are off on your world tour yet, but then I thought, there’s tones of stuff to report on before you get to the top! There’s that whole, “the true, untold” story angel. But still, I’ll be the first one to tell you this isn’t the most fast moving ride to stardom the world has ever seen. So I made a plan, and the plan was this: Introduction article, Article setting “the rules”, then I would dedicate a whole month or so simply on introducing the band to cyber space. Let me explain what I mean by this. I would open with an article about the band as a unit. I would sit in on a band practice or two and then make the guys sit down and sit still for a group interview. Then after that I would interview each of the guys on their own and publish an article a week (maybe more) on the individuals in the band. After I was done with the band bios I would move on to the songs. I would do an article a week over the songs that they have on MySpace and then move on to the million or so that they have yet to put online. If band drama or gigs or whatever came up, I would report on that as it happened.

                Look at my plan! Isn’t it a good beautiful plan? There’s a tone of stuff to write about! That could keep me busy for three to four months. Plenty of time for VK to give me something ells to focus on. Right? Right? WRONG! Remember how I told you guys about the ROCK TALK the guys had at the beginning of the year? Remember the ultimatum of “learn how to carry your weight or there’s the door”? Well this is now interfering with my beautiful well thought out bullet proof plan.

                Now before I continue I should say I fully support the bands choice to challenge everyone to reach their full potential. And because of this challenge Walter has asked me to hold off on my interviews until the end of January. Wait a minute. What about the band bios? What about the group interview? The band pictures? About this time I tell myself to grow up and stop pouting. Just skip the band bios and start on the song analysis.

                So here I sit, trying to write about my favorite song of theirs, Identity Crisis, and then I realize, crap, I’m going to have to interview them before I start picking apart their stuff. You see this isn’t like English class where we have the luxury of guessing at what Shakespeare meant by making Hamlet so damn indecisive, or what was up with Herman Melville’s obsession with the sea. No, these guys are still alive, I know them, and it turns out they read this thing. I know, I was surprised to when I learned that I didn’t have to remind them I posted something for them to read it. After I posted the article on the whole band drama thing I went home to visit family and see Walter and what not. As soon as soon as he saw me I was told that 1) my writing was good but brutal, 2) the guys liked it, 3) I was wrong, Tyler has been in the band 1 year, not 2 (oops).  Guy’s I’m flattered that you’re actually reading this. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside, but I can’t publish something on here about the songs you’re writing without interviewing you, get it wrong, and then have you read it! I will never hear the end of it and I will have to hide my face out of shame!

                My writing is not the only thing being affected by this whole waiting until the end of January thing. When the guys had the ROCK TALK they also decided to ask an old friend named Zane to find them some venues to play at. However they have also asked him to, you guessed it, not book any shows for them until the end of January. Yes the guys are still meeting twice a week and they are still working on new and old stuff, but honestly it’s kinda hard to say what they are doing. I haven’t asked them about this so I can’t say what I’m about to say is fact, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they are holding off recording until the end of the month as well.

                All of these things are perfectly understandable. By next month two fifths of the band may be gone, and there is no sense in doing band bios, or booking shows, or putting new recordings online until you know for sure who is going to be there and what exactly you’re doing. However it leaves everyone holding their breath until the end of the month and wondering what is coming up next and if anything is in fact coming up at all.

                Lucky for you and me it’s the 26^th and soon I’ll be able to tell you if the Voltage Knights are stronger than ever or if they are looking for new Voltage squires to run thru the gauntlet. I’ll keep you informed.

                This is Kayte, over and out

Trouble in paradise?

               After a much needed MLK day its back to reality. And doesn’t it just suck. Sorry, I’m just a bit sore about a grade I’m going to receive in one of my classes. I’m trying my best to get over it so I’m listening to Girls and Boys In Love by The Rumble Stripes. If you need some cheering up give them a listen.

                Anyway, I digress. Trouble in paradise, right. So if you’re reading this right now chances are you already know me and you already know the guys. So, you already know several things. Some of thoughs things might be that they can sometimes be neurotic perfectionists, or that there all more like brothers at this point than friends, or maybe you know easily they get distracted, or that sometimes they look for excuses to jump down each other’s throats. Why am I bringing all this up? Sounds pretty negative doesn’t it? I’m bringing all this up so I can inform you and perhaps prepare you for the possible changes VK might go through at the end o January.

                So at the end of December (or the very beginning of January I can’t remember) the band sat down for a serious TALK. Walter always calls these things “Rock Talks” and they’re kind or the equivalent of when you’re boyfriend or girlfriend calls you up and says “hey we need to talk” and then starts asking the really hard questions like “where is this going? What is this? Are you happy? Bla Bla Bla.” This Rock Talk topic was “what are you doing to help the band? Where are we going? And raise your hand if you’re tired of picking up the other guys slack.”

                If you know the guys, it’s no secret that they’ve kinda been putting band practice second for a wail. Now this isn’t a judgment. It’s perfectly understandable. They all have their fair share of personal and family problems, plus school, plus moving into a place of their own, plus jobs. It’s easy to see how a sick mom, a long distance relationship, a paper to finish, a job to go to, and wrapping your head around the concept of paying bills on time would push the band to the back burner. Still, at the end of the day, there is one thing that the guys have always wanted, and as corny as it sounds they want that spotlight, that record deal, their name in lights, what have you. Which means balancing their lives and stepping it up when it comes to practicing, recording, and getting shows.

                Several things came out of this Rock Talk, but I’m only going to talk about two at this point. The first thing is they are no longer meeting just once a week. VK is now meeting twice every week, once for their traditional band practice and once to work solely on writing. I’m all for this idea. It was just silly trying to get everyone together once a week, usually meeting late because of work schedules, and getting little done because they were trying to do everything at once.

                The second thing I’m going to talk about is the ultimatum. Every member in the band was presented with an ultimatum, step up your game by the end of the month or please, step out the door so we can start looking for someone ells. Ok, I’ve said everyone was presented with this ticking time bomb, but honestly the only two who really have something to worry about are Carpenter the drummer and Tyler the vocalist.

                It has always been a struggle for Tyler to make it to practice. Well….it has always been a struggle for Tyler period. He came into the band latter than everyone ells, after they had already known each other for a few years. Put that on top of the fact that the entire time he has lived in different city it’s no wonder why it has taken so long for him to graduate from Voltage Squire to Voltage Knight. Still, if you listen to the recordings the band has before Tyler came on board and after he joined the Voltage club, there is no question which is better. He has improved their sound and helped them grown beyond what I thought was possible and is truly talented. Here’s the big BUT you were waiting for.

                BUT he still doesn’t show up for practices, and he’s been with the band for about two years now and he still doesn’t know the lyrics, and they only have two songs where he is singing recorded and up on their myspace page.

                Carpenter (the drummer) is an entirely different problem.  Carpenter has been with the band sense they switched drummers the first time in high school. He is truly one of the sweetest guys I know, but all you have to do is try to talk to him on the phone and you’ll completely understand what I’m about to talk about. Carpenter is an absolutely fantastic drummer. He is the thing that whenever VK plays a show people consistently talk about. The problem is he doesn’t practice, which means he is not consistent at all. Also, I will be the first (but not the last) to tell you he has a bit of growing up to do. I’ll leave that up to you to interpret however you will.  

                So I guess we’ll have to see at the end of January what happens. I will say that before the practice on Monday Walter was A LOT more worried about this than he is now. So who knows, maybe everyone will step up their game. Either way though, big changes are on the horizon for the Voltage Knights.

This is Kayte, over and out

So here are the rules

              Its lunch time on a Friday afternoon and I really do need to be doing my homework for Sociology of Law, but I can’t focus. So instead I will write my second entry. This is actually a big step for me. I must have started four blogs before this and all of them only have one entry on them. I think it’s just part of my personality, if I don’t have a goal, a deadline, or something I just don’t see the point. Hopefully this blog will be different. I think it will be. First of all, I have a topic, which means I won’t just stare at the blank screen and say now what. Second, I know someone will be reading this. Don’t worry, I’m not kidding myself. I don’t think anyone will really see this, but I also know that at least the five guys in the band will skim it from time to time. And who knows, maybe my little sister will read this a few times if she gets really bored.

                All this being said, I feel I need to set some rules and guidelines for myself for this blog. And to make sure I do not bend or break these rules, and so my imaginary fans can know what to expect from me, I dedicate my second entry to this topic.

                When I first asked Walter if it would be alright with him and the rest of the band if I started a blog about their adventures in the music world I told him what I wanted to do was create a public record of the bands personal history (no, I didn’t say it like that, I don’t sound that formal when put on the spot). What I mean by this is I wanted to create something that allowed everyone to see the guys, and the band itself, for what they truly are. Not just for what they are for an hour or so on stage. I wanted to tell the story of four nerds who started a band in high school and who are still trying to get it off the ground. This concept sounds fairly easy, but the more we thought about it the more complex and personally risky it sounded.

                Walter brought up the first concern. I’m twenty, almost twenty-one. Walter is the same age. Most of our friends fall into the twenty to twenty-six rang. Let’s face it, twenty year olds are basically teenagers whose parents can’t legally tell them they can’t do something. That being said almost all twenty something year olds have done something that they really really hope their mother never find out about. “What if my mom reads this,” he said, “or Wesley’s mom, or Justin’s? We’d have to find a new drummer if Carpenters mom ever read it because he’d be dead! You can’t put that in there Kayte.” But without some of thoughs details it would just be another dopy fan blog and I would stop writing it after the third entry.

                Another problem along the same lines is the fact that we all met in high school, and because of this we have over lapping social circles. Can I publish the little drama and minor fights between the guys and our other friends? Can I talk about the fights the guys have between themselves? Would making private information like this public burn some bridges I have with my own friends, make the problems the guys have worse, or even endanger the bands existence? Should I even have an opinion on these things at all?

                Then next big problem is really my problem and mine alone. How much personal information about myself do I put in this thing? I mean, if this is a blog about the Voltage Knights is it really appropriate for me to put something in here about my cousin’s birthday party? Probably not. But I do interact with the guys; shouldn’t I say something about my life? Can I talk about other bands I find interesting? How about books, or what movie I saw this weekend? Can I mention current events?

                See what I mean by this can get complicated? If I don’t say something this could be boring and stupid. If I DO say something I can offend people and destroy friendships. If I say too much I could go WAY off topic and this blog just becomes a glorified diary.

                So here are the rules to help with the complication:

1) this blog will be parent and Jesus friendly, meaning, yes I will probably talk about parties I go to with the guys if it’s relevant but I won’t talk about stuff like the time Justin got so trashed that we had to go pick him up from Padre Island because he road tripped out to international waters so he could marry a goat on a dare (note: this never really happened, this is something I made up to provide an over the top example).

2) I will try my best to keep this blog relatively drama free. I’m not going to publish fights and trash talk simply because I have nothing ells to talk about. If its relevant to the band I’ll probably talk about it, but I’ll probably leave all the gory details out, for example, “today Tyler and Walter got into yet another yelling match. Who knows what they were fighting about, tensions have just been running a little high lately because everyone is stressing out about the big show coming up.” (Once again this is a purely fictional example)

3) I probably won’t mention my life too much unless it’s relevant to the subject at hand. I’ll mention it some, and I’ll probably talk about other bands that I like or books that I think deserve a shout out, but I’m going to try to tie everything back to the band. I guess the good rule of thumb is, if it’s relevant to the subject I’m probably going to write about it, if it’s not, probably not.

4) This is not going to be a blog to gush about how awesome VK is. Yes I think they have potential but I’m not going to say something is amazing unless it think it’s amazing. This means, sorry guys, but if one of your song sucks, or you’re doing something that I think is stupid, I’m probably going to say so.

5) Like I’ve already mentioned, I’m dating Walter, the bass player. This is not going to be a blog about him. This is going to be a blog about the band that he’s a part of. Yes, he does a lot, yes he’s talented, yes he’s dreamy, but I don’t need to sit here a gush about him on the internet.

                Alright. So there we go. Now we both know what I am and what I am not going to write about. Hold me to it. If I’m getting out of line please tell me. I’m going to try to post once or twice a week.

                Until then, this is Kayte, over and out

Just an introduction

               I have no idea how to start this thing. I’m not an entertainment writer. I would like to call myself a writer, but I haven’t written anything in so long that I think the title might have out grown me. Even if I was a writer, even if I wrote daily and had published articles and a book or two, none of them would be about rock stars, or pop stars, or death metal. I usually stick to Science fiction or fantasy.

                So what am I doing starting a blog about a band the world has yet to meet? Well I’ll tell you. I’m dating the bassist. That’s right, Walter Drake “Grizzly” Mclennan is my boyfriend.

Oh no, I see the red flags going up all around me. This is the part where you stop reading because you’re afraid that I’m going to tell you this is the greatest band in history because I’m dating the sex appeal. I promise you right here right now that IS NOT going to be the case. The painful truth about VK and me, the truth that I have yet to tell my main squeeze but he probably already knows, is that the type of music they play is not the type of music I usually go for.

Ok now that I’ve said that I see more red flags going up. “So wait,” you’re saying, “you’re writing a blog about a band that you don’t even like because your boyfriend is the bassist?” and what is that I see in the back? Yep, it’s Walter right along with the rest of the band with big hurt eyes and pouty lips asking “what do you mean you don’t like us?”

Well hold your horses guy’s (and general public), I never said I didn’t like the Voltage Knights. I just said that VK doesn’t fit in with my normal music selection. I like a lot of different stuff. One of my favorite bands is called the Old 97’s, they’re kinda an alt-country band. They’re the type of music you put on in the car and scream at the top of your lungs and nearly all their songs are about a girl they like or one that’s screwed them over. But I also like Regina Spektor, Ben Folds, and Mika. I also like some of the more popular stuff like Beyonce and Michael Buble, though I’m kinda limited on my specific facts on all of these people. I’m just saying, I know what I like and my likes are all over the place. However, if you listen to all these bands you’ll see similarities in my tastes. All of these artists write songs you can belt out in the shower, or on car trips. These artists usually write songs with interesting lyrics. All of them usually have you focusing on the vocals. I’m not saying that they don’t have very skilled guitarist/keyboardist/whatever, I’m just saying when I’m lessoning to You don’t know me, or Haven’t met you yet, or All the single Ladies I’m singing the words, not playing the cords. Over all, they make me feel one way or another. If you listen to the Voltage Knights it’s a different story.

Ok, so what were the things my favorite bands had in common again? Oh right: 1) they all passed the shower singing test, 2) they all have distinctive lyrics and vocals, and the thing that really ties them all together, 3) they all embody and project emotion. So why don’t the Voltage Knights follow these rules? Well to tell you the truth, they kinda do, just not directly.

I’m not going to sit here and pretend that I sing Submariner wail I’m rinsing shampoo out of my hair. These aren’t the type of songs that get stuck in your head and burst out your lips when you’re by yourself. But these are the type of songs that you’ll be listening to and then you’ll find yourself swaying back and forth with the music. The next thing you’ll notice is your head nodding with each beat. Before you know it you’re trying to play air guitar, bass, drums, and key board all at the same time and you’re scaring the poor old lady that’s sitting next to you on the bus. You don’t even notice it at first. Hell, you don’t even think you like it at first. It’s not that you dislike it, it’s just that you don’t even know you have an opinion until someone is asking you for one and then you surprise yourself by saying something like “it’s fantastic, the lyrics of Identity Crisis really spoke to me.” or “the key board solo in Submariner made me feel like I was sitting out in the middle of the ocean.” Or maybe even “they’ve really grown, I’m impressed. You can really see a different in their newer stuff.”  Their songs snake their way in to your brain and hold on like subliminal messaging. You don’t even know you like it until about the fourth time you’ve heard the song or until someone asks and by then it’s too late. You’re hooked and you’re pissed off that they only have five songs on their web site.

On to my second point, distinctive lyrics and/or vocals. The Voltage Knights have this in spades, but you don’t see it at first glance. This is probably due to the fact that they are by no means a band that focuses on vocals alone. All five of these guys have their own personal and artistic short comings and limitations, but they are all also EXTREAMLY talented, and they all try to share the spotlight. So it’s not that the lyrics and vocals are not spectacular in their own way, it’s just they’re not always shoved in your ears, face and down your throat. But once you do hear them you will notice every song does one of three things. It ether paints a picture, tells a story, or asks a question. Many times it does all three. For example, in their song Legend the band talks about being stuck in a relationship with someone who puts their own wants above the other’s needs using the characters Link and Zelda from the Legend of Zelda game series and asking the question, “is this really fair”. Everything they write is wrapped in metaphors and deeper meanings and honestly it can be a bit exhausting to listen to and unravel. But the weirdest thing is once you do unravel it nine times out of ten you’ll find that you’ve thought the same thing, asked the same question, felt the same way and sometimes you didn’t even know there were words for it.

My third and final qualification for my favorite bands is the ability to convey and project emotion. When I first heard the Voltage Knights, all the way back in ninth grade, I thought they were doomed because I thought they just couldn’t do this. I was wrong and I’m not too proud to admit it. The fact is the type of emotion I’m usually looking for is something loud that makes me jump up and down and I’ll be straight with you, VK has yet to really do that for me. But that’s not really their style. With the exception of the drummer, Carpenter, these aren’t really loud guys. They aren’t the type of guys to vomit puppies and sunshine on you when they’re happy or start a bar room brawl when they’re pissed off. But you know when they’re sad, confused, overjoyed or scared sometimes just by looking at them or stepping into the same room. The same can be said for their music. It’s not loud, it’s not in your face, it’s not over powering, but it IS moving. The pictures they paint and the stories they tell you can’t help but listen to. They draw you in and then spit you out leaving you walking around for the rest of the day feeling like you just stepped out of a dream you can’t quite remember.

I guess the best way for you to understand what I mean is by you going to their site and listening to them for yourselves, http://www.myspace.com/voltageknights. I hope you’ll see what I mean and I promise to keep posting and documenting the struggles and battles of the Voltage Knights.

This is Kayte. Over and out.