WINONA WHITAKER, Managing Editor
Posted Monday, January 30, 2023 12:00 pm
MOBERLY — Barely teenagers – the bassist is actually only 12 – the members of Concannon will release their first CD in March.
A year after starting as a cover band of alternative rock, Concannon is now producing original music and putting together an album. The band spent about 10 hours over three days in January laying tracks for 10 original songs at Backwoods Recordings near Higbee.
An 11th bonus track is a cover, said Darrell Lampkins, owner of Backwoods Recordings.
Still young and new to the industry, Concannon wasn’t intimidated its first time in a recording studio. “It was pretty easy,” drummer Kai Alexander said. The band practiced a lot before going in, he said.
“Yeah, it was a lot less stressful than I thought it would be,” said bass player Jacob Ayer.
“Darrell helped a lot. He’s a really cool guy,” said Brody Vestal, lead guitarist and vocalist. And the studio is in a house, so Brody felt comfortable there, he said.
“Darrell said it helped that they were all ready,” said Brody’s dad, Bobby.
“We had some things we wanted to change,” Brody confessed, but most of the songs were set before the group entered the studio.
Recording is different than playing live, though, said Bobby. On stage, Brody plays guitar and sings at the same time. He wasn’t used to playing and singing during separate takes, as he had to do in the studio, and didn’t know what to do with his hands when he wasn’t playing guitar.
Brody writes Concannon’s songs, though Ayer sometimes collaborates, the boys said. Alexander keeps to himself behind his drum kit. “I don’t like lyrics,” the drummer said.
Brody struggled to explain how he finds lyrics. They just come to him. “Usually it's last minute. Sometimes it does have a story to it,” he said.
The melody usually comes first, Brody said.
“The lyrics are always last,” said Ayer, and Brody usually has a bass line for the songs figured out for him.
Not so with percussion. Other than noting if he wants the drums to start the song or come in later, Brody leaves the beat to Alexander. “Since I don’t play the drums, I usually see what he comes up with,” Brody said.
“[Kai] usually listens to my bass line and then can add stuff,” said Ayer.
It’s not just their hair that has grown in the past year, the boys said. They’ve grown musically. Even the lyrics from Brody’s first original song, written a year ago, were not good enough to make it on the first album.
“We don’t play it any more,” said Brody.
But the aging of the band also means it has to deal with Brody’s changing voice. He can’t sing some of their old covers as easily as he used to, his dad said.
Songs that made it on the album include the title cut, “Distortion,” a song Brody penned after hearing students at his school talk about how Africa is poor and has nothing – a distortion of the truth, Ayer said.
“It seems like I always need to eat. Even some frost would be a treat. I’m so sick and tired of this old heat. Well at least distortion makes my heart beat,” the song says.
“Loathsome” takes on the topic of internet bullying. “You dumb-minded kids. You’ll never understand. Think always funny, all jokes will land. Do you understand the pain of us? People hiding with their internet disguise. People’s opinions will be our demise.”
The bass player likes “Notice Me.” “It’s a happy, good song,” Ayer said. “Puts us in a good mood.”
“I like playing all of them,” said Alexander.
“Kai likes playing shows,” Bobby said.
“I just like show business,” the drummer admitted.
Concannon’s album launch is set for March 25 – Alexander’s 14th birthday -- at 4th Street Theatre. Concannon played a concert there about the same time last year, but this year will be better, according to the boys.
“We’ve added a band,” said Ayer.
“And we’re 10 times better,” Brody said.
Joker’s Wild joins Concannon again for the March 2023 concert, and Lifeline has been added to the lineup.
Last year’s show at 4th Street Theatre drew 160 in a venue that will hold 299, Bobby said. He’s hoping the concert will sell out this year.
Concannon will play original songs from the album, the boys said, and they may play some new original songs. They’ll perform some covers, but maybe not the ones they played last year. They’re always working on new songs.
The band is pretty diverse, said Brody. It plays all types of rock, including metals. The boys don’t always agree on what songs they want to play, but they don’t let that affect their friendship, said Brody.
Whether or not to put a song on the playlist is usually by majority vote, said Alexander.
“Songs don’t always work, but when we find one, we keep it,” said Brody.
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