DTK Demon 

DTK.... workin for you!

demon83

Good news, DTK fans. We are back on a practice schedule and are working on some expanded set list material. Most importantly however, we have completed work on our promo dvd for our press kit. So, before long we will have this out to the several venues who have expressed interest in booking us. We have specific plans for Tulsa, OKC and Norrthwest Arkansas, so look for announcements of show dates in those places in upcoming weeks.

Today, the topic however is rock stars. One thing that drew us to this project was the total lack of modern rock stars! Why is that? All of the people who fit the mold of rock star, are people who have fit that mold for 20 or 30 years! Aside from U2 and Metallica, who in the last 20 years has emerged as an iconic rock star driven band? Nope, for the most part, you have to go back to the 70's or even the 60's in the case of the Rolling Stones. Where are the Steven Tylers, Paul Stanleys, Mick Jaggerses, David Lee Roths, Ozzy Osbornes and Paul McCartneys of today? Well, there aren't any. That's why all the cool old guys are still doing it, and selling out venues when they do.

The rock star ideology has migrated to rap. That's where all of the larger than life artists of today are found, and that's a shame for rock and roll. That's where you find the womanizing, bling wearing, hot car driving narcesistic egomaniacs of today's music scene, and Rock and Roll is in desperate need of new ROCK STARS!!!

I think that's one thing that made KISS so cool, and our show so much fun... the fact that everyone in that band was a legitimate rock star! You talk to four different KISS fans, and you'll have four different opinions on who was their favorite member of the band. That's cool! That's what it was supposed to be all about. Where is that now? I wouldn't recognize 99% of today's rockers if they were sitting next to me for four hours on an airplane.

So anyway, today's lesson is that rock and roll is not to be taken too seriously, but to be a true rock star, you need to be universally interesting! Today's rockers could take some lessons from Paul, Gene, Peter and Ace.

DTK tell all book in the future?

gene8

OK... while you are waiting to hear about new dates for DTK live shows, I'll tell you a little bit about our creative process. We have honestly just taken some time off since Halloween. The pace of the 12 night, 36 set (12 hour days) schedule of that month was absolutely crazy at times and frankly we were pretty tired. I don't know how a band goes on the road with that kind of schedule, but I can honestly say we could NOT have done it without our road crew. I've said it before and I'll say it again... those people rock.

And I am SERIOUSLY thinking of writing a book about the development of this band. There is some serious off-beat and unintentional comedy along the last two years.... but again, I digress...

OK, so what is next? We develop new songs, we continue to work on improving and staying sharp with the songs we already perform in concert, and we reinvest some of our earnings back into the show - in the form of improved pyrotechnic devices, sound systems, equipment, costuming etc. We continue to work to improve ourselves as musicians - both instrumentally and vocally and we work to stay in shape - so as to look GOOD IN SPANDEX.

So what new songs are we working on? Well... that'll be a secret for now, but let me say this... every one of them was requested during the October shows - and so those are the ones we learn next. It's that simple. Whatever KISS songs we don't do, and you WANT us to do... let us know. We are either working on them or will learn them.

So this month marks TWO years since the origins of this project. In some ways, I can't believe it's only two years, and in other ways I can't believe how much of my life this has impacted. Seriously, even if nobody but whoever reads this blog reads it, I may have to write some kind of book about it just so we don't forget anything.

This one time at band camp...

green gene
Got to dig Ace's other band (bandcamp) tonight. Man are they good! Those cats can rock. If you haven't seen them, you should. I hear they like Jaggermeister. Anyway, good times... and most of the DTK crew rolled out to catch the show too. And as usual for us, various rock and roll style events occured which will have to make it to the book I'm gonna write someday! But I digress...

Before that, I took in a Latenite Drive show. Those cats can rock too! Man, Tulsa is just full of good bands. Marc Nelson, the bassist of Latenite Drive also has another band - Let's Zeppelin, which of course is a zep trib band. Another great band.

So today I'm getting yet ANOTHER request by some very kind fans in Northwest Arkansas to play a gig over there. That's at least the third person in the last two weeks that has told us they will help us pack out a show over there, and I'm pretty slow sometimes, but it is starting to sound like a good idea to book a gig in northwest Arkansas. Ya think?

As always, DTK is planning for the future. Right now we are compiling a list of "new" songs to learn and add to the growing set list.

Any suggestions?

The look of DTK is the key...

God of Thunder
OK, so I'm probably a little biased but I think my band is the best KISS tribute band in the nation (at least).

Today's blog may not win me a lot of friends in the KISS trib community, but it needs to be said. Ultimately, we KISS fans are all part of a larger family - but at the same time, we trib bands are also competing to some degree to be better than each other. If we didn't have that attitude, honestly it would be harder to pull of the characters KISS created! After all, they made no apologies for being out to conquer the world. So look at this article as more of a positive for us, than a slam on anyone else. We respect these other bands, we just think we are better.

Oh sure, some other KISS bands have nice clean high production quality mp3 samples on their sites that the put together after some expensive studio time.

They may have more expensive costumes, sets and gear.

They may have been around longer, and be more well known (for now).....

But way too often, they have at least one or two guys who don't look right. Wrong build, too short, too tall etc. Frankly, it's tough to find that many guys who are on the same page musically and theatrically AND happen to look enough like the guy they are supposed to be that they can combine musicianship, stage craft and basic accidents of genetics to pull it off effectively.

Now, in a KISS band - granted, it is easier to do because you wear makeup and a costume. Those factors can hide the fact that you really don't look facially like the guy you are supposed to be. But they can't hide being way too short, fat, tall, etc. We are lucky we all can pull the "look" off really well - but luck's just part of it. For example, when we planned this show, I felt it was important that I personally LOOK more like the Gene from the mid-70's instead of the more rotund Gene of the reunion era. So I hit the gym and got back in shape, losing over 20 pounds so that the unforgiving spandex would be my FRIEND.

Don't get me wrong, it isn't always a lack of physical committment that makes a guy in a trib band look wrong. Like I said, sometimes it's just a matter or height. Nothin you cn do about that. That's where luck comes in, and I gotta say that when the four of us are costumed up and out working a crowd, the reactions are priceless. We look like KISS - not four random guys in costumes. And the "look" is more about completing the illusion even than the sound - not that we don't sound great. We do.

Rock on....

What's next for DTK?

OK, so we had our big end of the Castle "tour" band party last night at Ace's house. It was a great time. And let me take a sec to wish McKenna Smith (our photog chick and makeup chick) a happy birthday. We sang happy birthday to her and had a feast while watching Ace's dog make kamakazie runs at fetching a tennis ball.

We also watched video from our shows on friday 10/29. Good stuff! That may have been overall, our tightest pair of sets we did. Only problem is that was the night that Peter started losing his voice. In fact, he started the day ill and pretty much hurled right at the end of the first set. Those of you who heard him sing Hard Luck Woman that night know what I mean... The dude gave his voice for Rock and Roll!

Speaking of Peter (Joe), I have to mention to you... it's VERY hard to do what he did this last month. If you came to our show, you know he was on a 15' drum riser. He was so far removed from us AND the crowd, that he was basically playing totally by what was coming through is monitors. Here's the secret....

Our monitors were running on REALLY long cables which often caused such a drain on the power head that they literally overheated it and shut it down fairly often. The bad news is that this meant Joe (who was already on an island) was now even further disavantage and down to his last lifeline. The GOOD news is that his last lifeline was a little combo bass amp we ran from the main bass rig to a spot right by his right ear.

So, good thing for him he had a good bass player to follow! ;) Good for the bass player that he had a good band to play with!

So there you have it. Peter(Joe) by far had the most dificult roe to hoe of all of us. We are really proud of him for pulling it off so well.

So what's next for DTK? Good question. We are working on several opportunities for upcoming shows, and honestly we are taking a bit of a break after a very long month. Stay tuned though. We'll be updating this information pretty frequently.

Any questions or comments are always appreciated!

G$

Greetings! Welcome to my blog...

Well, this is the first break we've gotten since completing our month-long gig at the Castle of Muskogee. I still don't have all of my voice back yet. That was a lot of work and a lot of wear and tear on the old demon bones, but man was it fun!

We met a ton of great people out there and got a lot of new sign-ups on our mailer. We just are so greatful to all of you who came out, were LOUD, rocked with us and bought our t-shirts and cd's. You people have no idea how much energy you give us when you are out in LOUD numbers like you were most nights this month!

There are times when we are about to start the sixth set in two days, and I'm just bone tired - thinking about how my knees hurt or my toes hurt or my fingers are sore from playing bass all weekend, and then, we hit the stage and all that is forgotten in an instant when I see and feel how through us the music and spirt of a KISS concert is being felt by the people who honor us by attending our show!

It's a high unlike anything I could ever describe or experience otherwise. It is absolutely one of the most thrilling things I've ever experienced - being able to bring the spirt of Gene Simmons' "Demon" character to local stages in our region.

Thanks to all of you who came out, and thanks to my bandmates, road crew, sound crew and all our significant others. They are all part of the DTK team and it takes all of them to bring the Oklahoma KISS experience to life.

THEY KICK ASS!!! And they allow ME to KICK ASS!!!

This is only the beginning for DTK. Stay tuned and keep rockin...

DTK ROCKSDTK Demon I


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