November 2002 - Don’t let the umlauts fool you! Though Düsseldorf may look über rawk on paper, this historical Deutschland city is much more "Om-pa" than "Udo" and it’s hardly the place one would willingly pick to hold an international hard rock summit. But it was there, in this quiet, traditional city along the Lower Rhine, that the paths of three globetrotting punk musicians would fatefully cross. "It was my first time in Germany and I was freezing" recalls London May, renowned Los Angeles Goth-rock drummer of Samhain, Tiger Army, and Son of Sam. May was then touring the chilly European republic as a 'drum-for-hire' with Duane Peters and The Hunns. "We kicked off the tour during a snow storm at some macho beer hall in Düsseldorf. That’s where I met Frankeee and Eman. They were scrawny, pasty face fish-out-of-water rockers like myself. We naturally gravitated towards each other."
Frankeee and Eman were the core of the Australian group BoyDotCom who had a new CD out and were supporting The Hunns on most of their European campaign. For Frankeee, a native German now living in Melbourne, the tour was also a nostalgic return to where he had achieved moderate success with his previous group, Hollywood Teasze.
Over the next month both groups traveled together through seven countries and 30 cities. London, Frankeee and Eman soon became fast friends and spent many hours discussing their surprising commonalties. Eman recounts humorously, “It was that unforgettable show in the 'Ruhr Pott' of Germany that would set off an incredible 4 weeks of us and London having coffee's together, swapping CDs and bitch about the world of life and music!”
Unlike most rock and roll camaraderies (whose beginnings and ends are usually dictated by a travel itinerary,) the friendships between London, Frankeee and Eman proved to be genuine. The nomadic trio would stay in touch after the tour’s completion, and over the next two years London would continue playing music and producing bands in Los Angeles while Frankeee and Eman toiled away Down Under promoting BoyDotCom.
During that time, many e-mails and song ideas were shared between the three, and talk (or text) soon elevated into an inevitable musical collaboration. "The BoyDotCom stuff was just suggesting their possibilities," comments May, "But once I heard some of Frankeee’s acoustic demos, I was convinced that we should all make a record together." |
On May’s direction, the normally ruckus sound that all parties were known for was set aside in an attempt to create something sonically and artistically different. "We turned down and stripped back" says May about the first writing and recording sessions for the newly christened 'The Foul And The Fragrant' band.
In June 2005 Frankeee left Melbourne and traveled to Los Angeles to record the basic tracks for 'Dead In The Center' with London. It was a happy reunion for the two long distance friends. "We reminiscenced about Düsseldorf ... for about a minute" laughs May, "then we got right to work." Within ten days the two had finished not only the foundation of the entire album but even starred in a four part 'Making Of' documentary that is to be released simultaneously with the CD. "It was probably the most fun working on a record I have come to experience," recalls Frankeee, "We harmonized on such great scale that nothing seemed impossible. At the time we didn't have a clue how good all of it would end up to be."
Eman, alas, had remained in the 'Out Back' during this stage, but he was soon to add his own melodic counterpoint to 'Dead In The Center' once Frankeee returned to Melbourne with the US tapes. “Before filling the gaps with my guitar parts and a fresh set of ears I already had no doubt Frankeee and London had found a niche that was going to be better than I could have imagined” recalls Eman, “From then on troubles we faced would make us experiment.”
After the final vocal bits had been recorded, the album was then painstakingly mixed and mastered by the group utilizing hundreds of shared internet files and emails. Finally, in November 2005, the 'Dead In The Center' enhanced eight song CD was finished (complete with video featurette) and it inspired a characteristically soft-spoken May to exclaim (in a very Gallagher-like fashion,) "It’s an instant classic! The best thing I’ve ever heard, period."
The Foul and The Fragrant’s first CD, 'Dead in The Center' is being pressed independently in North America and Australia and is available in stores through limited distribution and on the band’s web site www.thefoulandthefragrant.com |
