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| Playful back in the day: Nathan Brown, John Wurth, Ian Chandler and Brady Sharp. |
Doors to all the action open at 7 p.m. this Friday, August 8, at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 3028 Jefferson St. The bands start playing at 8 p.m. Tickets are $5 at the door.
About the Playful Eight
The Playful Eight was born out the bedroom recording escapades of Nathan (going by the name of Doug) Brown (left), on vocals and guitar, and John (Leon) Wurth (right), on drums, recording direct to cassette as The Malone Brothers. Eventually, they became The Playful Eight, continuing to refine their skills and streamline their sounds from witty ramblings into actual songs, using every ounce of musical skill they had at the time to utter perfection.
They enlisted the help of Ian (Kenny) Chandler (right) on bass and completed the legendary cassette-only masterpiece Eight is Enough, consisting of such poignant masterpieces as Don't Eat Scabs (Stick to Beef Jerky), I Got Yo Eye, Kick My Skull In and the classic Rodents Rodents Everywhere, Rodents Rodents in Yo Hair.
Through Ian, they met guitarist Brady (Gus) Sharp (left). Together, they orchestrated the classic hits The Moss Bunny's Journey to the St. Louis Arch, The Wig Song, Puma Go-Go, Chocolate Covered Hick on a Stick and many other classics.
Among their key influencers: The Dead Milkmen, Mojo Nixon, P-Funk, The Go-Go's, Vince Guaraldi and Danzig.
The Playful Eight (or "The Eight" as they became known as to fans) got their start by renting out and performing in Paducah armories, deserted high school basement cafeterias, garages, fraternal meeting halls and the like.
They performed alongside fellow bands MC2, Room 27, Plaid, HHM, Mrs. Frazier and many others. These shows grew in attendance and in audience diversity and were very well-received.
The band provided a foundation for a lot of the music scene in Paducah today. This DIY ethic of creating your own scene still exists in Paducah, and Sharp says the band is happy to be a part of it again after so many years.
About The WheelersThe front man for The Wheelers is Wheeler Underwood, Paducah's most unique human being. Known around the community for his multi-instrumental talents, stage antics and infectious passion for music and life, he's backed by legendary guitarist and early Paducah punk progenitor Kenny Martin, psychedelic guitarist and artist extraordinaire Dave Philips, Dave's son Isaac Philips on keyboards and the inspirational Jay Grace on drums.
Many of these fine musicians were part of MC2. The Playful Eight were proud to open for them on the night of their first gig in the late '80s.
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| Photo by Jill Tanner |
Paducah band The Union Suit is a full circle journey of four musicians representing different aspects of the past and current Paducah punk scene, all converging together to create something completely different. Present and past members have been parts of Meanson, Century Century, Slipshod, Rookie of the Year, Room 27, Parallels, The County, Ozone Kite and other important Paducah bands.
Consisting today of Dan Tanner on guitar and vocals, Cory Greene on bass, Jerry Davis on guitar and vocals and Jason Griffith on drums, The Union Suit features lyrical and melodic vocals and clever lyrics laying over powerful duel guitars with a very distinctive math-rock sensibility.
About The Hi Fi NinjaThe Hi Fi Ninja is a power trio consisting of former Middle Class Trash drummer Ronnie Retail on guitar, keys and vocals, his wife Shana on bass and percussion and Jerry Davis (right, also of The Union Suit) on drums and vocals.
Specializing in short, "two-minute ditties," it's raw, unadulterated punk with a somewhat classic sound to it, owing to their many old-school influences.
