North Jersey Notes: King Kelly, STATE, Venus Vegas & More!

KING KELLY—Clifton, NJ

I recently received Facebook message from my bud, Alex Zadoroznyj, regarding his new band, King Kelly. I’ve known Alex since he was the guitar player for My Only Hope, my hometown buds—now known as Hollywood Kills. Alex is now playing bass for Clifton-based band King Kelly, so I had to take a listen.

I logged onto their ReverbNation page, reverbnation.com/kingkelly, and when I saw the photo of the band, I actually recognized a couple members, but I couldn’t remember from where I knew them. Then it dawned on me that they were my old buds from Deny The Myth!

Turns out, Deny The Myth parted ways a couple years ago, and singer Steve Biasucci and guitarist James Nono ventured out to start a new project. Nono decided to switch to keyboard, while he allowed guitarist Bobby Torres to take on all the guitar duties. Steve and James knew that Alex was a free agent and hasn’t worked on anything in a while, so they begged him to play bass for their new project, while adding Jake Rea behind the kit. King Kelly was born.

I got to hear a track called “Mallory On Mustard Leather,” “They Call Me Fancesco” and a more mellow song called “The Absurd Hero.” I have to admit that I was really impressed with singer Steve Biasucci’s voice! It was powerful and more melodic than I remembered it. King Kelly sounded really good, and will fit right into the North Jersey music scene, no problem. Check them out for yourself at reverbnation.com/kingkelly. Would I lie to you?

NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:

My bud, Kraig Marshall of the band STATE, recently entered his song “Psalm 69” into a contest for a chance to get his song on the soundtrack for the upcoming rockumentary, Fix: The Ministry Movie. The soundtrack will feature Tool, Nine Inch Nails, Soundgarden and, of course, Ministry. This is a great opportunity for Kraig as a songwriter! To vote for Kraig’s song “Psalm 69” log onto soundcloud.com/kraigmarshall/kraig-marshall-psalm-69. Vote now, and vote often.

I recently received my copy of Morning Still Life, the debut CD from Venus Vegas, and I have to tell you that this CD rocks! From the first song, “You’re Not Worth My Time,” to the last track, “Signs,” the CD remained consistently heavy with a pop flair throughout. Singer Davin Alson really proved that he can sing with the big boys! My favorite track on the disc was a song called “Saints and Sinners.” If you want to preview the CD or buy it yourself, log onto venusvegasband.bandcamp.com. For more on Venus Vegas, go to facebook.com/venusvegasband.

And finally, it looks like Makara, featuring my bro Joe Cattano from Aarius Studios in Sayreville, NJ, will have to have their reunion show sooner than they planned to. It turns out J.D. DeServio’s Cycle Of Pain will be performing one last local show this Friday night Feb. 4 at The Centro in South Amboy, NJ before J.D. leaves for world domination with Black Label Society, and J.D. invited Makara to open for Cycle Of Pain, since he won’t be around for their actual reunion show at The Cup Complex in Linden, NJ on Feb. 19. For more info on Joe and Makara, log onto facebook.com/pages/Makara/130163897038613.

That’s all for now! If your band is from North Jersey, and you want some exposure, send your press kits to Arts Weekly, c/o Tim Louie P.O. Box 1140 Little Falls, NJ 07424, or you can email me at tim@theaquarian.com, where you can also let me know where you’re performing next!

Just remember: we are all in the same boat, so every little bit of exposure counts!

Tim Louie is the Author of S**t Happens.

NJN Concert Calendar:

2/4—Panic Switch/Makara/Cycle of Pain—The Centro, South Amboy, NJ

2/5—Pharoah—Mexicali Live, Teaneck, NJ

2/5—Cropduster—Maxwell’s, Hoboken, NJ

2/5—David Johansen (New York Dolls)—The Brighton Bar, Long Branch, NJ

2/5—Passing Planets—Lodi Boys and Girls Club, Lodi, NJ

2/5—Piston Driven—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

2/7—Cascadence—Angels and Kings, NYC

2/9—Knollwood—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

2/11—ZO2/Daredevil Squadron—The Brighton Bar, Long Branch, NJ

2/12—Charetta—Crash Mansion, NYC

2/19—The Dirty Stayouts/Pounder/Departures/The DIYS—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ

2/19—Makara (reunion show)—The Cup Complex, Linden, NJ

2/20—Taproot/With Daggers Drawn/One Brick Down—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ