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At the end of the 80's as SideKixx began to attract a lot of attention, the singer and the Band began to grow apart. It was the end of an era. While the singer was M.I.A. the Band became restless. At rehearsals long time friend and crew chief Billy Phelps would belly up to the mic and jam with the Band. Eventually they started writing songs together and really started to vibe.
In the studio, the singer attempted to sing the songs written by Billy and the Band, but to no avail. After the Band had left a 12 hour studio session, the engineer and I had Billy stick around to give it a whack. The kid nailed down Tonka U, the first of songs written together, and it just felt right.
One night, in the fall of '90, SideKixx was performing at a venue that had become their "home turf". Like so many nights before, the room was filled with people who came to see their hometown band. Unaware of the tension that had been building, they were expecting a typical show. The stage became an ugly scene that night. I think it was actually built on top of a volcano!
After the seventh song, the original singer throws down the mic and storms off the stage. The Band and the crowd waited. After a minute of awkwardness Billy steps out of the crowd and up onto the stage. Picks up the mic, and the Band busted into some of the new songs they had written. They finished out the show and the crowd went absolutely nuts.
What you are about to hear are the songs that these three guys and their new singer created.
Joseph Reed, TRX Entertainment
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_____________________________________________________________________________________ Review:
Side Kixx
ATTACK OF THE KING PENGUIN on Retrospect Records///
by Derric Miller
Staff Writer Hardrock Haven///
Comments: After finally releasing their debut on CD last year, Side Kixx is releasing their “alter ego” so to speak, in the form of Attack of the King Penguin. The original Side Kixx band featured lead singer Teddy Kotch, who left the band before this recording. Instead of keeping the band name while switching singers (something 99.99999 percent of all bands do), Side Kixx became King Penguin, with Billy Phelps on vocals. You can pick up those recordings between 1990-92 on Attack of the King Penguin today.
Side Kixx with Kotch was Hair Metal, pure and simple. With Phelps on board, a couple things changed. Number one, the screams are pretty much gone. Phelps is a good singer, but his voice leans more towards Mainstream Rock. The other thing that was a “natural” evolution is the guys became profoundly more playful with their lyrics and song titles. Songs like “Harmonics Au Gratin,” “Ewok Love Adventure” and “Snotbreath” make you wonder if they wrote these songs just to trivialize the earnestness of the Grunge movement. Also, it’s funnier than hell …
“Tonka U” begins the CD, and you’ll get an adept guitar lead from Mike Peterson, fluid and somewhat like you’d get from Firehouse. When Phelps begins singing, you’ll hear a warm, sturdy voice, that carries an edge when need be. This is the highlight of the CD already, on song one, because everything from the goofy title to the deft songwriting pulls together. Peterson’s solo mimics the vocal melody line and then launches into a heated passage. “Tonka U” just sounds like a hit song.
The farther you get into the CD, the goofier it gets, so “Buck Rogers” straddles the line between oddball and good. The bass work from Scott Kastner stands out here, with its bubble-gum groove. Phelps delivers some weird talking passages, and Peterson’s solo goes into tapping mode, just to remind you that it “came from the ‘80s.” It’s still good, but quirky as all get out.
Then, the gloves come off on “Harmonics Au Gratin.” What’s slightly ironic is that there’s really nothing “cheesy” about this track. It’s the hardest track thus far, with drummer Brian Peterson smashing some punk-style leads and the group offering strange backing vocals. Phelps basically yells half of the song. You have to listen to it a few times before you’ll dig it, but live, it probably pulled the whole crowd to the front of the stage.
Acoustic guitar greets you on “Ewok Love Adventure,” a new style for this release. Phelps nails the vocals, especially during the verses. He also releases some weird bellows after the first chorus -- Hey! Hey! Hey! -- and the song nearly doubles in tempo. Like most of the release, weird but good.
Green Day is probably jealous they didn’t come up with the song title “Snotbreath,” but Side Kixx beat them to it. Call this track experimental, and not in the Mr. Bungle way, but in the “drugs” way. There isn’t a much of a pattern to glom on to, as it’s chaos wrapped around a uniform beat for the most part.
Best song title ever might go to “Most Fish Don’t Eat Jello.” This immediately begs the question: Then which ones do! Seriously, fish eat Jello? And how did Side Kixx find this out? Lyrically, the song is about some dirty-minded freak reminiscing about his past exploits, and not in the “love song” tradition. The title is the best part of this track.
“Garlic Lollipop” is another imaginative title. The way Phelps sings makes the lyrics tough to understand, as he delivers everything with a lazy sneer. The chorus is nonsensical, but funny, and while you may not enjoy hearing it, you can tell they truly enjoyed recording it.
It ends with “Laminated Vannamotherbutt.” Suddenly, the music is coming at you with a Ska-type riff, and during the first vocal break, it’s background noise and musical effects galore. At the end of the song, you get a drum solo that leads into the “hidden” track. Think Anthrax rapping, and that’s what you get here. It’s all talking, musical explosions, and then vocals closer to a Ramone’s yell-along. For the Christmas season, someone is singing “fa la la la la” in a bad falsetto as well. How else could this CD end?
Side Kixx, at least Attack of the King Penguin, is probably best suited for those who dig knowing everything about the underground scene circa 1990-92. It’s all entertaining, but when they changed singers and “evolved” their sound, Side Kixx isn’t the feel good Arena Rock band anymore. Still, just knowing there is a song out there called “Most Fish Don’t Eat Jello” should be enough to make you want to buy it …
http://www.retrospectrecords.com/products/side_kixx_2.html
_____________________________________________________________________________________ Review:
Side Kixx
TALK OF THE TOWN on Retrospect Records///
by Derric Miller
Staff Writer, Hardrock Haven.net///
Comments: When you gander at the CD cover for Side Kixx’s 1988 re-release titled Talk of the Town, depicting a penguin leaving a limo along with a leggy lass and dressed as a high-brow man of the town, you’ll at least understand the band has a sense of humor. But that’s about all you get from the CD cover. In a word … CD cover art has come a long ass way since 1988. That aside, the music on Talk of the Town from this New Jersey based quartet is similar to bands like Trixter and Firehouse, with pumping guitar anthems and vocals that only true tenors can try to keep up with.
Guitarist Mike Peterson opens the CD with a catchy riff on “Talk of the Town.” They will remind you a bit of Hurricane with the level of musicianship and high quality vocals, although singer Teddy Kotch isn’t quite the talent Kelly Hansen is. This is just another great hard rock pop hit, with massive amounts of energy dripping from every note. Peterson’s guitar solo is intense and fluid, and this is a strong introduction to the Side Kixx sound.
“In the Night” is next, another razor-sharp riffing song. It may remind you a bit of TNT at that time, with bubbly guitar leads and soaring vocals. They were probably influenced by Bon Jovi, but how couldn’t they be, coming from New Jersey. The harmonies and background vocals are huge, and drummer Brian Peterson makes the song even stronger with massive drum fills. Another hit song that wasn’t a hit.
The first slower composition is “Headin’ for a Heartache.” They don’t tackle this type of song with quite the same fervor as the more upbeat ones. It’s not bad, but the rest of the CD is better.
“Let It Go” is presumably a live track, because an announcer says, “We’ve got a great band for you now. Ladies and gentlemen … Side Kixx!” Kotch lets an opening wail, and they launch into a fiery, pounding rocker. The vocals are a bit too much up front in the mix, so all you really hear is vocals and drums. You’ll find yourself skipping it on your second listen to the CD.
They get back on track with “No More (Getting’ the Best of Me).” Instead of good times and partying, this is an edgier song. Kotch adds an element of anger to his delivery, and instead of making you want to drink beer and party, the song makes you want to pick a fight. Wicked cool song.
It all ends with “You Make the Rockin’ World Go Round.” (Side note: It’s obvious Side Kixx hates the letter “G” because they abbreviate that letter in three of the eight songs.) Anyway … this is probably a shout-out to Queen, with triumphant shredding from Peterson on guitar and more manic drumming from the other Peterson. It’s easy to hear why they were such a draw back in the day …
Talk of the Town is just another feel good look over your shoulder to yesteryear. If you liked Hair Metal back in the day, then you’ll need to check out Side Kixx today.
http://www.retrospectrecords.com/
HRH rating: 7.3/10
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Acoustic
