Before their disappointing release on Megaforce records. Lucy Brown had a demo that was literally sweeping the country. Their sound was rooted in 70’s Funk and Soul with a Heavy dose of Metal. They were Soulful, Heavy and Funky. Gene’s baritone voice was complimented by scorching guitar, earth shaking Bass and Funky Percussion. I got to hang out with the band one night after a show somewhere in NYC, They were truly cool and down to earth. Gene’s passing a few years later was a terrible loss. He was a really talented and original person. He will surely be missed. JD


James: You just moved up here from Baltimore right?


Gene: Washington D.C.!


James: Besides the obvious why did you end up moving to New York?


Gene: It was the scene. There is so much more up here in New York besides labels and all. We have been playing most of our shows between D.C. and Rhode Island and it’s a lot easier to get to those places from here.


James: Where have you been playing since you came up to the area?


Scott: CBGB’s, City Gardens, The Limelight…


James: Didn’t you just play a show with the Fiendz?


Scott: Yes, we did. They were really nice guys.


James: Can you give me a little background on the band?


Louis: We started  year and a month ago.


Scott: We stole Gene from another band called The Now. The three of us were together. We all went to high school together but we weren’t friends. We weren’t brothers.


Gene: They stole something from me.


James: I heard your demo and I was really taken aback. When I came to see you tonight I expected you guys to be a lot bigger and a lot blacker.


Scott: We’re not big?


Gene: (directed at me) How tall are you? A lot of people say that when they hear my voice. It just booms.


Scott: Actually we’re all 250 pounds. We just don’t look it.


James: 250 pounds? Maybe when the whole band gets on the scale.


Scott: Face it, we’re not that skinny.


James: No offense. It’s just that I expected something more like Barry White.


Scott: We’ll let it go.


James: Have you been approached to record an album yet?


Gene: We don’t know what’s going on yet. We’re talking to some people.


Louis: It’s bullshit because everybody lies to you. You just don’t know what’s going on.


James: Who have you talked with so far?


Gene: Caroline


James: Are you looking to stay independent or are you looking to go mainstream like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Living Colour have? I mention those bands because you do bare resemblance to those acts.


Louis: The Red Hot Chili Peppers are mainstream?


Gene: I think a lot of performers and a lot of artists are trying to get their point across. Crossing the racial barrier in rock music.


Louis: its not necessarily evil being popular.


James: I guess it depends on the person and the situation. The word “sellout” is dragged out a lot. Especially in underground music. The mainstream is often considered to be an unnecessary evil. If you want to play a specific kind of music you’re just playing to people who already believe the same things that you do. I want to spread our word further.


Louis: It depends on where you’re coming from I guess.


James: How would you compare New York to D.C.?


Gene: Let’s separate the  music scenes. New York is very close in the sense  that there is a lot of clubs in a close vicinity to each other.


Louis: There are a lot of musicians


Gene: New York is so comparable. There is so many clubs to play in.


James: Is there less room to grow as a band in D.C.


Gene: Yeah, there is less room to grow.


Louis: A lot less clubs


(At this point the noise level got so loud I couldn’t hear what the band was saying..)


James: What have been some of your most memorable shows?


Scott: Trenton!


Gene: Our show with Gang Green, The Toasters, Bim Skala, Bim and 7 Seconds in Trenton.


James: Has the music of Washington D.C. influenced the bands sound ?


Gene: We all grew up listening to a lot of Hardcore and a lot of Go Go music.


Scott: Minor Threat, Chuck Brown and the Souls. We played with EU and Faith No More.

I think D.C. is a lot more open minded than most places.


James: I think a lot of the bands that have come out of D.C. influenced and inspired me. Bands like Ignition, Minor Threat and Soulside. It seems like a very musical city.


Louis: It is.


James: Okay, what about disastrous shows. Have you had any of those?


Scott: The worst show ever. And it’s not because we played bad or anything. It was opening up for the Bone Dones. Everyone that walked in had a three piece suit on. They were like “Hey, this is a kinda funky band. Let’s go hon.” It was just the worst crowd.


James: When are you going to be putting out something new?


Louis: We have an EP coming out this winter.


James: Any closing comments?


Louis: Give that man a shirt.


(Interview James Damion outside CBGB’s. It appeared in the third issue of Unite.)