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UNDER THE “COVERS” WITH HISTORY’S END | ||
COVER FEATUREby Tom Lounges “Ewwwww...you’ve got a FAT ass!”
It is the cue for guitarist Rich Melton to trigger the programmed sample that begins each evening’s journey through the back alleys of “Ham Vegas,” a place with no geographical boundaries which exists solely in the hive-like mindset of the band and its fervent following of fans. WELCOME TO “HAM VEGAS” BABY... History’s End have somehow managed to create their own little sub-culture, which is steeped in tawdry sexual humor, seediness and songs that other bands never do, or at least never do nearly as well. In between some of the best damn retro rock cover songs one will ever hear –– ranging from Madonna, to Beastie Boys, to hair bands galore –– are plenty of off color jokes, cheeky stage antics and assorted antics of good-natured, drunken debauchery. When the music starts and one arrives in Ham Vegas, they discover it to be a place populated by bawdy broads who shake, shimmy and sometimes do more to insure that the band notices them. It is also home to raucous blue collar guys who get so drunk that they thrust heavy metal “devil horns” into the air for such a decidedly “un-metal” song as Rick Springfield’s “Jessie’s Girl.” It’s a place where Jagerbombs are considered “mother’s milk” and where the old saying –– “Party ‘til you puke!” –– is akin to a mantra. In short, Ham Vegas is like a twisted adult version of Peter Pan’s “Neverland”; where one need not act responsible, where there are no rules to follow, and where the bottom line is simply having fun! Though this writer is a veteran of several History’s End shows over the years, having to sit down and put words to paper about a band like this is truly a career challenge. Capturing the essence of the band, the scene they inspire and all the drama that goes along with it is an daunting task to ask of any mere human. THE EXPERIENCE... For the uninitiated, be forewarned that attending a History’s End performance is an experience unlike seeing any other band in the region. One’s cover charge at the door pays for an evening of controlled chaos. Newbies getting their first taste, will be amazed at the raw energy that spills to and fro between the band and the fans, as they abandon all cares and concerns for the sake of finding a place on the dance floor. They are like an un-ending frat party that continues from one weekend to the next, with many of the same people in the same state of inebriation, dancing to the same songs and responding in the same fashion. It’s a little like being in the “Twilight Zone.” That being the case, for those loyalists who return time and again, each visit carries with it a sense of deja vu. “Coming to see this band is kinda like going to see ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’,” aptly surmises keyboardist/vocalist Chris Kurtis, known for changing his slogan-adorned t-shirts several times a night on stage between songs. “The people who come to see us are as much a part of a History’s End show as the band and they know it. People who have seen us before wait for certain things to happen, so that they can respond.” In example, I offer the aforementioned “fat ass” line. Another trigger point is the part in the show that leads up to the start of “Jesse’s Girl,” where Kurtis asks –– “Ladies, what’s the noise you make when you see a friend you haven’t seen in a long time?” When that question is poised, ladies in the house know that they are expected to squeal like a gaggle of little girls in response, and that their collective effort will mark the start of the song. Then there is the “junk in the trunk” dialogue which alerts them that the band’s super rocked up rendition of “Baby Got Back” is up next. Male fans know it’s cool to pile on stage and play rock star during the delivery of Sublime’s “Love Is (What I Got).” Likewise, the ladies know that they are welcome to jump up to writhe and grind during a rave up rendition of the B-52’s “Love Shack,” which is a near end of night highlight. Guitarist Greg Millikan sits behind the drum kit during “Love Shack,” enabling Carmen to step up front, where he is engulfed by a sea of hip-shaking sirens in what from an audience perspective looks like an onstage orgy. THE CAST OF CRAZIES...
The six inmates who have taken over the asylum are: Mark Smith (lead vocalist), Scott Hicks (bass), Chris Kurtis (keys/vocals/percussion), Phil “Who’s Yer Daddy” Carmen (drums), Rich Melton (rhythm guitar/samples) and Greg Millikan (lead guitar). They cite percussionist Keith Jackson (of the reggae band Triple Dose) as an auxiliary member of the History’s End tribe. “Keith plays a lot of shows with us whenever he is available. We think of him as being like a part of the band now,” said Carmen. Though the band line-up has been solid for the better part of two years, History’s End has never been a very exclusive club when it came to membership. All told, History’s End can claim 18 members in the 9 years since the original incarnation came together in guitarist Rich Melton’s basement. The idea to form a band was Carmen’s, who had been playing professionally in his family’s wedding band since his preteen years. Like most kids coming of age in the early ‘90s, Carmen and Melton were caught up in the burgeoning grunge sound that was emanating out of Seattle. “ORIGINAL” ROOTS... Fresh out of high school and fueled by the sound of Nirvana and Alice In Chains, the two childhood pals had aspirations for fame, fortune and success. While things have not worked out exactly as they planned, those aspirations have been realized to some extent on a regional level. After all... History’s End has not performed before a less than standing room only audience in the last three years; they are among the best paid bands to ever grace a club stage in Northwest Indiana; they have legions of hot women shaking their money makers at the front of the stage (and often on stage) at every show; every other band on the scene envies them; and every club owner wants them. “Of course it’s a thrill to be up there playing in front of all those people every night,” said Hicks. “It’s nice to see that many people having a good time and enjoying what we’re doing. It’s cool to know that we are entertaining them. It’s nice when people come up and tell you that you’re a great band, but let’s face it, we’re doing other people’s music. We’re doing proven hits, so it’s not like we can really take a lot of credit for keeping the dance floor going.” There was a time not too many years ago, when Hicks would have never considered playing another musician’s licks on stage. “I was totally against doing covers at all at one time,” he said, noting years spent chasing rock ‘n’ roll stardom from Chicago to Los Angeles with all-original bands like Luv Junkies and Live Nude Girls. A combination of being burnt out on the bullsh*t of the music biz, needing to pay the rent, and having a tight friendship with locally respected guitarist Greg Millikan, eventually brought Hicks to where he is today. Millikan had been like-minded about cover bands while building his reputation bending strings with a progressive rock band called Mata Hari. A virtuoso, Millikan has been playing guitar since age 4. “I was one of those kids who would sit and practice playing for hours on end while other kids were out playing baseball,” he mused. Millikan took to playing in Bravo Johnny, a celebrated retro cover band that predated History’s End getting into the game. In Bravo Johnny, the cash was good, the gigs were easy and there was little or no rehearsing required. With that band affording him adequate funds and plenty of free time, Millikan had the chance to keep writing/recording his own music on the side (which he still does to this day under the name of Stimulus Engine). Hicks soon saw the light and hooked up with Bravo Johnny. When History’s End set out to replicate Bravo Johnny’s success in 1999, they eventually coaxed Millikan into their band and Hicks came along with him. Prior to forging what has become a brilliant career as an in-demand cover/retro band, History’s End, had spent four years as an all original band. They released a cassette-only set of music in 1994 aptly titled, “In The Beginning,” which earned them a largely teen following. Teaming up for multi-band all ages shows with other rising “teen angst bands” like Alison’s Mailbox, Felix and Underwhelmed, helped to snowball their popularity. Their full length sophomore album, “Java Man,” was released on CD and sold remarkably well in local record stores, eventually being voted “Best Local Album of 1998,” by the reader’s of this publication in our annual poll. CRAWLING UNDER THE “COVERS”...
“We started doing some covers in the show just to get gigs, so that we could hit people with our original songs,” explained Carmen of how the metamorphosis began. “As it turned out, we had a lot of fun doing the covers. People really responded to them and started coming out more and more to see us, expecting the covers,” he continued. Drunk on popularity and increasingly bigger paychecks, the band began adding more and more covers to their set, so as to keep playing more and more gigs. The revolving door –– in regards to their membership –– began to really “spin” around this same time. Only Carmen and Melton remain from the first incarnation of the band. Even Melton was initially unhappy to see the band doing so many covers and left the line-up for a year in the late ‘90s to hook up with the all original band, Hollowpoint. “Things were getting sorta weird at that point,” recalled Melton of that time. “I thought leaving is what I wanted, but it wasn’t.” Original vocalist Jim Mauck announced his departure from the line-up around the same time that Melton returned to the group. Mark Smith, who fronts the band today, credits his career as a singer to a night of drinking heavily with friends. “I got talked into stopping by at a rehearsal and auditioning with them one night when I was trashed and getting a ride home,” laughed Smith, who never so much as croaked a karaoke song before finding himself drafted as the band's new mouth piece. To learn that Smith stumbled into his current position is amazing given the wide range of vocals Smith can cover. He is a mimic of extraordinary talent, shifting effortlessly from the falsetto needed for Dee-Lite’s “Groove Is In The Heart,” to the caustic vocals of Nine Inch Nails’ “Closer,” to rhythmic street raps on Run-DMC’s “Tricky.” Smith was the voice on a collection of five original songs that became a limited-edition, cassette-only release simply known as The Green Tape. By that point, it was already clear that pushing original music was soon to be a thing of the past for the band. Several more line-up changes followed, until Millikan and Hicks came on board and stabilized things. Keyboards were added to the mix in the form of Phil Carmen’s brother, Pete, who later stepped down to make way for Chris Kurtis in 2001. Like Hicks and Millikan, Kurtis was another alumni of the late, lamented Bravo Johnny. “Chris has brought a lot to the band,” injects Hicks. “Without naming names, there used to be a lot of tension within the band when different people were involved, but the six of us make a perfect team.” Kurtis embodies a certain “ringmaster” quality in the midst of the three-ring circus that is a live History’s End show. His super-charged “rah rah” spirit is the glue which binds the disparate personalities and humors encompassed within membership. Kurtis helped to boost the band’s profile tremendously when he created their award-winning web site –– www.historysend.com –– where one can find more day to day drama than on the leading soap opera. It’s a controversial world of “he said/she said” that keeps fans and foes alike coming back for a regular fix. “It’s all about the drama,” confessed Kurtis, who spends endless hours posting photos of fans from nearly every show on the site. “The people who come to see us are as much a part of History’s End as we are,” repeated Kurtis for a second time, on why they have two photographers in their entourage snapping away at every show. In closing, Smith urges people who really want a History’s End experience to attend one of the many theme parties they host throughout the year, where the band and fans play dress up and take the sordid trashiness of “Ham Vegas” to new depths. “We did a ‘Pimps & Hos’ night that really rocked. The chicks all dressed up like ‘hos’ and the guys were all decked out like Mac Daddies,” laughed Smith. “The people who come out to see our band really know how to have a good time. They go with the flow and everyone has a lot of fun!” Some themes of other past parties have been –– “‘80s Rock Star Night,” “Spice Girls Night,” “Catholic School Girl Night,” and “Trailer Trash Night.” Announcements for such events are made on the band’s web site well in advance, so people can make plans to be a part of the freak show. THE FUTURE OF HISTORY... While the band is riding high in the saddle right now, they are doing all they can to keep things fresh and enjoyable for those people who hire their babysitters and plan their weekends around seeing History’s End. The guys work so hard at keeping their Ham Vegas resort a happenin’ tourist attraction, because they are all aware that one day their time will be over. “Every band eventually burns out and that day will come for us too,” said Hicks. “But until then, I am having the time of my life playing with these guys.” Hicks is the first to vocalize what all the others eventually admit to... That one day History’s End will ultimately toss their hat back into the original music ring. “We all LOVE what we’re doing right now with this band,” stressed Carmen. “But we are all musicians and we would all like to see what kind of stuff we could create with this incredible line-up of talent that we’ve got here.” Melton nods in agreement with Carmen. Kurtis cocks an eyebrow at the notion, while Millikan just flashes a big toothy smile. Smith, in true H.E. fashion is too busy ordering a fresh round of drinks to either notice or respond. In the end, maybe the booming sound byte that is used to trigger the start of their shows will indeed ring true –– “H-H-H-History repeats itself! The motherf*cking saga continues...” Perhaps it will! (History’s End perform May 17 and on every other Saturday through the end of July at 2nd Dimensions in Schererville, IN. They also perform May 10 and May 24 at TheWoodhollow Loft @ Omni 41 in Schererville, IN)
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That standard salutation bellowed by Phil Carmen from behind the History’s End drum kit always evokes a roar of approval from the crowd gathered in the front of the stage.
There is no one person who stands out in the History’s End line-up. They take an ensemble approach to playing, with each member contributing one part of the collective body politic that emerges as the History’s End experience. 
As History’s End began looking to parlay the huge success they had with local teens into the more lucrative night club scene, they discovered region rock haunts were reluctant to book all original bands.