Sgt. Air-Raid

From The Extended Group

Revision as of 01:41, 21 January 2006

Sgt. Air-Raid is a Shoreline/Ballard based pop-rock band. They derive their current name from a misunderstood Foo Fighters lyric.

Members

Owen Sullivan: Vocals/rythm guitar

Lukas Peter: Lead guitar

Garrett Parker: Bass

Jeremy Cho: Drums/backup vocals

Beginnings

In the summer of 2003,out of the ashes of Mild Mannered, Jeremy and Owen decided they wanted to start a new project with several song ideas already in mind. They called upon ex-Pork guitarist Lukas to possibly play bass for them, but after a practice, it was decided that Lukas would play lead guitar and that a bass player would be found later. The trio practiced fairly regularly during that summer in the Cho Family living room whenever the parents were absent. Several songs were written and others dropped during the period.

College

That fall, the band members began taking classes at the UW and SPU and didnt have nearly as much opportunity to practice together although efforts were still made. Owen would pick up Lukas on saturday mornings and they would go up to Jeremys house where they would oftentimes wake him up and have practice for several hours. It was during this time period that the tradition of going to Tasty Teriyaki on 145th and Greenwood was established with Owen and Lukas regularly eating chicken katsu. The band would convene more often during breaks from school and attempt to write more songs, although no live performances were planned. Although Jason sat in on the bass at least once, he was deemed an improper match for the band since he would invariably seek out a chair to sit in, noticably reducing the energy in the room. It wasnt until the fall of 2004 when a semi-permanent bassist was found, Lukas's friend Garrett who had played bass in various church bands alongside Lukas for several years.

The First Show

In the Summer of 2005, it was decided that the band should perform live, if only in front of some friends. Jeremys house was selected as the location since his parents would be gone at least temporarily. Many phone-calls were made and people were asked to come early for a bbq which would take place in Jeremy's backyard. Extensive practicing and sound-checking was performed in the house and a fog machine was even borrowed from Kjell. On a whim, the band was tenatively named "Bergmanns Bear" after the cryptozoological entity, an enormous bear thought to live in very remote regions of northeastern Russia. Lukas had to briefly run home in order to prepare a dinner of pad thai. At show-time, there were approximately 20 people present including the Henderson parents, all crowded into Jeremys rec-room. The set went reasonably well with fog occasionally obscuring the musicians as people sat placidly on the ground occasionally taking pictures. Unfortunately no video record survives because of a problem with Owens camera. At the end of the set, it was announced that guests would be required to leave immediately since the Cho parents would be returning that evening. Quickly packing up gear the last of the band left just as the Cho parents were arriving. It was around that time when during a conversation with Kevin, it was discovered that "Bergmanns Bear" was already an alias used by him to produce electronic tracks on myspace. In order to avoid an incident, the band decided to drop the name and search for another. It wasnt until several weeks later that "Sgt. Air-Raid" was selected, a play off the Foo Fighters song "Hero" in which Dave Grohl sings "so ordinary" in a fashion which makes it appear as though he is singing the band name.

Current

The band is still practicing occasionally with hopes to record soon. Garrett has a friend in the recording department of Shoreline Community College who has agreed to record the band if studio time can be arranged. The band has begun practicing in the Kogane House basement. The low ceiling forces Lukas to either keep his head down during practices or stand in a "power stance" with legs spread to allow for head clearance. At one point a pipe leaked causing raw sewage to flood the floor sparing the practice room but making some uneasy. The walls are also sound-insulated in old comforters purchased from Value Village.

Influences

The band is influenced by many different artists including Weezer, Ozma, Minus the Bear, and others.

Gear

Owen: Fender Telecaster made in Mexico as well as a 40 watt solid-state Marshall amplifier and Boss DS-1 distortion pedal. Vocals are through fairly inexpensive microphones and various guitar amplifiers.

Lukas: In the early months, Lukas used a Fender Stratocaster made in mexico played through a Vox pathfinder 15W amplifier with a DOD FX-69b "Grunge Pedal". He eventually borrowed his roommates Crate C-40 amplifier for more power and better tone, while keeping the same pedal. In the Spring of 2005, Lukas purchased a Schecter C-1+ from ebay, and in the later summer upgraded to a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Trem-o-verb 100W head on a 4X12 Mesa straight-cab.

Garrett: Uses a Yamaha bass played through a 120W Ampeg amplifier. Recently he has started using a 350W head loaned to him by a friend.

Jeremy: A relatively cheap Tama drumset borrowed from his church, which has resided in his house as long as some can remember.