click play to insert a heaping dose of rock 'n' roll into your soul!
04.20.10 – Happy Blazey Haze Day everybody! Sunday before last I played a couple of shows in Southern Californey with my friends Harry and Zack. The first one was an afternoon show at The Coffee Cartel in Redondo Beach, and the second was a drunken bar gig at The Puka Bar in Long Beach. We shot video of both. Here's one from the Cartel show:
"I Don't Want to Live on the Moon" @ Coffee Cartel, Redondo Beach, CA
More to come from these shows!
03.27.10 – 
Chonk and the Hooligans are playing this year's 'Taste for Artisans' party @ Jack London Square in Oakland, sponsored by East Bay Express. The show is on Saturday, April 3 @ 10:00 pm.
We're gonna be playing an unplugged set, straight jugband style, yo! Here is the tentative band-member line-up:
Chonk - Sangin', guitar, banjo
Melanie Russo - Uke, sangin'
Danny Suede - Rippin' guit, sangin'
Jesika Allen - Drummin', strummin', & a'sangin'
Eliot Curtis - Stand up bass! fartin'
Ryan Boone - Fiddlin' and a'diddlin'
The party goes from 5-11PM. Other bands playing include The Shants and The Dedications.
"The Boogie Ship" recorded on a tape
02.02.10 – Hear yee, hear yee-- Lovers and loveless heathens alike! Chonk and his Band of Goddamn Hooligans are playing a show on VALENTINES DAY at Rasputin Records in Berkeley. Show starts at 2pm.
How much will this no doubt priceless AND timeless spectacle cost, you ask? One hundred dollars?? NAY! Three thousand yin? NAY! Five bucks at the door? NAY, NAY, NAY! This show is absolutely freaking FREE. The line up is tentatively as follows:
Chonk - Singin', guitar, banjo
Robb Whiting - Guitar, harmonizin'
Jesika Allen - Drummin', strummin' singin', and a diddlin'
Danny Suede - Slicin' and dicin'
Eliot Curtis - Bumpin' and a thumpin'
Brady the Singer - Voxin' it
Erik Hoffman - Drummin', keyboardin'
Ryan Boone - Fiddlin' and a skittlin'
~~~~~~~~~~~
We'll have a limited number of free CD's on hand. Come gitt 'em while they're hot!!
Thanks unto Carver for setting this up.
01.28.10 – Updated the LISTEN section. Check it out!
01.26.10 –
"CHONK" CD by Chonk
$6 dollarbucks
1. Hello, Greetings, Welcome
2. Distortion
3. The Boogie Ship
4. Well . . .
5. I Wi$h I Had $ome $$
6. Goodnight Irene
7. Clean Up On Aisle 5
8. Golden Nuggets
9. Bummersville
10. Carousel
11.Trampolines
12. Sinking Feet
13. Floating Upsidedown
14. Fluorescent Gumballs
15. Yellow Snowcone
16. Crack Me
17. Enjoy the Colors
18. Orange Feeling
19. Boggled Whiskeydream
20. Drifting over the Horizon
01.12.10 –
Hey! Here's a song from our show on Sunday.
"Banana" Live 1/10/10 @ The Stork Club, Oakland, CA
01.10.10 – Happy 2010 people! To celebrate the 10th day of the 10th year of the new millennium, I am playing a show tonight with a brand new band we call Jack & The Jackettes. The show is going down at The Stork Club in Oakland. It's going to be a blast; I'm really excited about it.
Jack & The Jackettes is a makeshift band of hooligans. My buddy Robb booked a gig, then called me up, asking if I wanted to throw a band together with him and rock out. "HELL YEAH I DO," said I.
Brady the Singer - Vocals
Jesika Allen - Drums, guitar, vocals
Ryan Boone - Violin
Eliot - Bass, beard
Robb Whiting - Guitar, vocals
Chonk - Guitar, vocals, banjo
We're gonna be playing some Chonk songs, some Robb songs, and a few covers. SHOW STARTS AT 8:30, $5 at the door. I'll have CD's. SEE YA THERE!!
10.08.09 – Yo yo yo, dudes and dudettes! I've been working on some new recordings with my friend Eliot, who runs a recording studio in Berkeley called Tones on Tail. Here are a couple of songs we recorded there on our monsterbitch OTARI 2-inch tape machine.
"GOLDEN NUGGETS"
This is a ditty I've been demo-ing and experimenting with for a few months. This is definitely the funnest-sounding rendition yet. Eliot Curtis plays tambourine and that funky-ass bass riff thumpin' up in ya' earbones. Nick Dvorkin is bangin the drums and tickling the synthetic ivories.
"BOGGLED WHISKEY DREAM"
I thought this might be the last time I'd have to record this song. Recorded on 2-inch tape with a natural chamber reverb we got by setting up a speaker and 2 mics in the art gallery above the studio... Needless to say, it sounded pretty sex. A week later, Eliot ""accidentally"" recorded over it with Nick's metal band! *!@#$%^&*()*!!! Luckily, we mixed it down to the computer before the original was forever scrubbed from the analogue world.
***UPDATE 1/10/10 - We didn't lose the original recording after all! We thought it was gone, but it's not gone! WOOO!
8.06.09 – This is a music video I edited together for The DR. DEMENTO Show on the new Internet TV channel The REAL UHF (www.therealuhf.com). It's a music video for a song called "Blame the Booty" by Leslie and the LYs of YouTube fame. They have a hit called "Gem Sweater," which is pretty hilarious.
I edited together this video shortly after I finished my "Distortion" music video last year, but couldn't release it until today, because The DR. DEMENTO Show hadn't launched yet! Now it has, so definitely check out The REAL UHF. There is some great, terrible, bizarre, and hilarious content on there. I did the editing for the first two episodes of The DR. DEMENTO Show for the channel, which features acts such as Dan Deacon and Neil Hamburger.
8.05.09 – This is the studio version of my new song "The Boogie Ship," recorded at Tones on Tail with Eliot and Michelle. Enjoy!
7.14.09 – While I'm pretty sure nobody actually visits this website, I still feel kind of bad when I go months and months without updating it.
In attempt to redeem myself for my gross negligence toward my imaginary web audience, here is a bunch of cool stuff I've been working on over the past few months...
"The Boogie Ship"
I wrote this song over the course of a couple weekends about a month ago. I uncovered an ancient scripture written by Zachary the Wolk, and used it as inspiration for the first few lines, and the rest just kind of rolled out. It's got a sort of seasick vibe to it. This is a cheapo demo version, but you'll get the idea. I'm working on a studio version with Eliot right now, at his new recording studio Tones on Tail .
"Boggled Whiskeydream"
Recorded this song in my garage a bit ago. I've been playing it with The Bendable Professionals too.
"Get Up!"
Speaking of them Bendable Professionals, here's a funky ditty we recorded live in my living room, called "Get Up!" I love the way Natalie's vocals sound on this one. I wanna take this sucker to the studio with the band, and lay it down sumpin' nasty. Soon, hopefully!!
"Slow Down in Florida"
Here's a song written and sung by none other than Latin American butt-rock guitar legend Danny Suede of The Bendable Professionals. Hear this man get in touch with his hoe-buckin' country-doodlin' roots on this track. Melanie rocks the uke, and I'm pluckin' the banjo and singing back-up on the words I know.
"Choking Victim"
This is another Bendables song that we recorded with our friend Joe on the drums. Melanie is singing lead, Danny's on maracas, and that's me on the guitar and yelling. It's a cover by a no-good-crusty-punk band by the same name! We bring a sort of Latin American/Tropical vibe to this song, as a direct nod to our beloved lifelong hero Jimmy Buffet.
"Golden Nuggets"
I wrote this song in spurts over the course of the past year, and recorded this on an old 4-track recently. I finished writing it a couple months ago in the hallway at Rasputin Records, during a 10 minute break. For some reason the bathroom I sit across from on my work breaks inspired the last verse. Go figure. Might be why it's so shitty! Zzzzziiing! Beat ya to it, douchebag. BAND VERSION COMING SOOOOON!
"Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! That Cigarette"
This is a Tex Ritter song I recorded with Danny Suede on lead guitbox. The Bendable Professionals play this song a lot, because we like it. And if you don't, we don't even care!
"Hello, Greetings, Welcome"
Last, and quite possibly least, this is a 2:00 spaced out tapedeck electronic song I put together, using a toy voice changer, a relaxation tape, a drumset, and a keyboard. This is the intro track to my new self-titled demo CD, which will be available here soon, along with a Bendable Professionals EP. Both are available now at the front counter of Rasputin Music in Berkeley!
More soon.
3.03.09 – The Bendable Professionals are playing at outdoors acoustic set at Cordonices Park in Berkeley, CA this Saturday, March 7... unless it's raining, in which case, we'll probably just play in my garage instead.
It's a private birthday party, so if you want to check it out, send me an e-mail at chonk@chonk.org.
3.01.09 –
THE BENDABLE PROFESSIONALS
(from left to right)
Melanie Russo - Ukulele
Katy Mitchell - Vocals and Percussion
Chonk - Vocals, Banjo, Guitar
Michelle (hidden) - Tamborine, flute
Danny Suede - La Guitarra y Vocals
Eliot Curtis a.k.a. THUD - Bass
Billy Trujillo - Drums, Guitar, Vocals
2.27.09 – The Bendable Professionals (our new band) are playing at Jose's Lounge Underground in Monterey, CA, tomorrow, February 28. We're opening for French Miami . . . It's gonna be fabby-fresh fantabulous.
2.20.09 – Hey! I just finished mixing down a new track called "Yellow Snowcone" . . . by The Bendable Professionals.
Chonk - vocals, acoustic guitar
Harry Hall - bass, beatz
Danny Suede - lead guitar licks
Melanie - maracas
Katy - harmony vocals, tamborine
2.07.09 – Here's a video of our band The Bendable Professionals playing my song "Boggled Whiskeydream" at The Suggestions Box in Berkeley, CA (my house) for my housemate Natalie's 25th brithday party.
Select HD for higher streaming quality. More videos from this show are on the way.
And, staying in line with the Hollyweird theme, here are some press and vanity shots of the band that night. Click a thumbnail to see the full-sized pic.
Also, I finally got the "Distortion" music video up on YouTube in Hi-Def. Also did some tweaking to the final edit. Be sure to select HD in your playback settings to get the full experience!
1.22.09 – Been playing lotsa music with my friends lately. We're getting our shit together, so we can play some goddamn shows soon.
pictures by john!
1.17.09 – HEY! It's 2009, and I started a BLOG! (Also accessible by clicking the link above!)
10.21.08 – The "Distortion" music video!
10.16.08 – Here are a few still shots from the forthcoming cosmic dickslap of a music video, "Distortion." Click on a picture for a bigger view:
10.15.08 – Yo yo suckaz! Long time no post. I just wanted to post a little update entry, since it's been a while. It looks like I should be finishing up the "Distortion" video in the next two or three weeks. I'm hoping to have it done in time for Halloween, since it's a pretty horrific video. I'm really excited about it. It's going to blow faces off of people's skulls.
In the meantime, here's a song I wrote and recorded this weekend. It's called "Boggled Whiskey Dream":
08.06.08 – The "Distortion" video is coming along nicely. Just about finished shooting all of the animated sequences, which means it's almost time to dive full force into editing mode. Expect to see it finished some time around late September.
In other news, I scored this cool kid's organ from 1959. It's an Audion Organ Key Selector, and it's fun as hell to play with.
07.10.08 – Here is a video I editted together of the Independence Day show at The Real UHF. Hosted by none other than the legendary Dr. Demento. Mel, Billy, and I got together 3 songs, and drove down to LA from Berkeley for the weekend. The rest of the band is playing with us for the first time on stage. The result was silly, sloppy, chaotic, and a whole lotta fun! Enjoy.
July 4, 2008 - BUBBLE TROUBLE!!!
07.08.08 – The show was great! Thanks to everyone who came out and participated - especially naked guy in a monkey mask. And ESPECIALLY Zack Wolk for throwing a fuggin' awesome show! I'm editing together a video of our set, which I'll be posting probably today or tomorrow-ish. In the meantime, here's a picture of me and Dr. Demento (!!!):
07.01.08 – Exciting news: Zack called me up this morning and told me that the 4th of July Neil Hamburger show is going to be hosted by none other than the infamous Dr. Demento!
We also have added a drummer to our band for the evening (we're tentatively named Bubble Trouble), also courtesy of the Wolkster. His name is BARS. Thanks Zack!
In other news, I've continued working on the animation for the Distortion video. Here are some shots from tonight:
Sends a chill down the ol' spinebone, don't it?
06.26.08 – On the evening of July 4th, I am playing a show with my friends Eliot, Billy, and Melanie at Zack Wolk's studio in Hollywood, The Real UHF. We will be one of several bands opening up for America's Funny Man, Neil Hamburger, who will be performing his new country album in its entirety with his band. It's gonna be a heluva party.
Other bands inlclude ANAMANAguchi, Hawnay Troof, and Count Smokula. Seats are limited, so if you would like to reserve a spot, E-mail the Wolk Man himself at Zack@ZackWolk.com as soon as possible!
Click the picture below for a full-sized view:
06.23.08 – Last month, Ja$on Bane, and Natalie, and I drove down to L.A. to record the live action portion of the "Distortion" music video in Zack Wolk's TV studio for The Real UHF. A lot of my favorite people showed up to participate, and it was like a 13-hour-long party of flavor in the studio's mouth. Here are some digital photographs of said event:
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06.22.08 –
A broken primate gets his shit together. This is an animation I did for the upcoming Distortion music video.
02.23.08 –
02.10.08 – My brother Greg spent the weekend in Berkeley, and we recorded a remake he wrote of my song "Crackle in the Spackle." This is the first mixdown; it's still a work in progress. I'm gonna add drums and bass to it, but it sounds pretty sweet acoustic too. Not bad for a day's work, that's fer damn shure! Click play to cheggit!
02.09.08 – I posted a rendition of Leadbelly's "Goodnight Irene," that I recorded with my friends Sara and Chandra. Check it out in the Listen section or by clickin PLAY below.
02.09.08 –
02.07.08 – You may notice this site is looking a little different. A major update is underway. Keep checking back for some big updates and new content.
02.02.08 –
01.30.08 – Hey y'all- I posted a couple of new mp3's to the Listen Section- "Wild Ride" and "Trampolines!" Both are more sketches/works in projects than actual songs. I'm actually working on a cooler expanded version of "Wild Ride" right now, which I'll post up here later. I'm probably going to make an animated video for "Trampolines!" some time in the near future. I want to add some trumpets and verses to the song. Anyway, check em out- they're both funky li'l tracks.
I currently piecing together my "new" album WHOAtmeal, which is going to be a collection of songs I've done spanning over several years. I'm finalizing the tracklist and mastering the tracks. I think it's going to end up being a double album. I hope to have a finished project within the the next couple of months. In addition to that, I'm working on an album of newer material. Yes, these are exciting times indeed, my friends.
I updated the Store section. My old demo Ocean Blvd. is out of print now, but you can still purchase a different demo of my music with newer tracks for only $6.00. This will be only available until WHOAtmeal is finished.
In other news, I'm still working on giving chonk.org a facelift, and also on my new band/multi-media project, The Bendable Professionals. Web design is a time-consuming monster, so it's taking a little bit of time. It'll be worth it though, just you wait!
01.04.08 – Greetings fellow 2008-ians! I've got some cool news that I'll be announcing on here soon regarding some Chonk CD's on the horizon. :-O
I decided not to use this news page as a blog, like I suggested a couple of entries ago. Instead, I'm going to be firing up a proper, separate, blog page (which will be in journal section, and will replace the current LiveJournal link that is there now). I'll be posting lots of randoms thoughts, pictures and drawings on there, while this News page will just have info on my music/media projects.
New musics in the works, expect samples, as well as 3 brand new Chonk CD releasing.... coming soon!
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