the circle of the tree of life
by Bing Futch
About four years ago in Orlando, you were hard-pressed to find much original music, though plenty of bands were aching to ply their wares in the smart handful of venues that existed then. It would be a gross understatement to surmise that “times have changed”. The key word here is “capitalism” as the floodgates of original music have blown the locks of The City Beautiful wide open. The O-Town buzzword has stirred blood into the water and a host of critters have gathered to feast within the frenzy; bands with an itch to play, club owners with beer to sell, promoters with teeth sharp like daggers. The height of the insanity hasn’t nearly been reached yet and we can only hope to survive the bombast when that point comes near.
Let’s hope it never does.
But it’s inevitable, and the only thing that can prevent Orlando from becoming another bullshit music town is the presence of well-placed family. I’m not talking nepotism here, at least not along bloodlines. When you’ve been plying your trade in a town for a certain amount of time, you’re bound to form alliances with other musicians and artists who share a deeper love for their respective crafts. We’re not devoid of decent family ties. Which is partially why we’re up to our mouse ears in bands.
One particularly fun band is WEEDEATER, and they’ve been sadly absent from the scene of late due to some of those otherbandly commitments. Lead singer/guitarist SCOTT MAHANEY churns out hellbilly grunge with an earnest love for bluegrass as bassist RALPH AMEDURI and drummer ANTHONY COLE provide the rhythm and basement. Ameduri is also a member of TERRI BINION’S band while the multi- instrumental Cole is frontman for the funky KOW.
KOW has been changing members of late, losing guitarist MIKE FADEL recently, but that hasn’t stopped the groove for the group. Drummer DAN FADEL and bassist MATT LAPHAM are part of the core for this revolving door of an ensemble, providing a cornerstone that finds roots back in New Jersey, where Fadel and Lapham hung out with BRIAN CHODORCOFF, an original guitarist for the funked-up guys. MANDADDY, the bald vocalizer of GARGAMEL!, often joins fellow family members on-stage for sporadic jams of ad-libbing toasts and dubs on the microphone. There’s a feeling of love, of symbiosis, of “we’re all in the same boat” when these artists jam together. It shows that they’re not concerned with beating each other out–for they are stronger when sharing their talents from the pool. It’s all for the love of the show. There’s no inter-screwing going on here, at least not blatantly.
Chodorcoff and longtime friend DAVID SCHWEIZER are closer than some, though their combatant personalities often suggest an atmosphere of brawling opposites. Chodorcoff, along with Ameduri, was part of the original MY FRIEND STEVE band before being unceremoniously let go and left to their own devices. From the ashes formed PRINCETON’S GUFF and MAD CHOW CHOW.
KOW, GARGAMEL!, WEEDEATER and PRINCETON’S GUFF–a cross-section of the Orlando family music scene. Kinder, gentler and more focused on the music than the trappings that surround them. There are plenty of perservering individuals out there who have worked within such a family structure and their stories will soon appear here. In the meantime, I’m thankful for a town that will give us a chance to enjoy a real Scene–if we can just keep our eyes upon the music and not some distant prize that may not even belong to us in the long run. The joy is the tune, and this page full of artists truly realizes it.
Orlando’s own Tree Of Musical Life, a circle–if you will.
