WANT TO GO?
Who: Krusty Watch Guys with Dip Spit, Duderus and the Linus Method
Where: Blind Bob's, 430 E. Fifth St., Dayton
When: 9 p.m. Friday, June 24
Cost: $5
More info: 937-938-6405 or www.blindbobs.com
Artist info: krustywatchguys.bandcamp.com
It’s not uncommon for rock bands to reunite to mark the anniversary of a beloved album or collect on a major payday. Other reunion shows are just for fun, which is the case with the Krusty Watch Guys. The Dayton band, which played ska-punk locally from 1994 to 1997, performs at Blind Bob’s on Friday, June 24.
With former members scattered between Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Utah, Arizona, California, New York and London, England, the musicians are using the occasion of their 20-year high school reunion to play one more gig together.
Tim Hackett (bass) and Joe Anderl (vocals), who was a year behind his bandmates, recently discussed reviving the Krusty Watch Guys, which also featured Kris Swanson (guitar), Nick Schroeder (drums), Chris Erin (trumpet), Steve Poleskey (alto sax), Reid Davis (trumpet), Rahul Mehan (baritone sax) and Noah Bellamy (trombone).
Q: What music inspired the Krusty Watch Guys?
Hackett: "Individually, we all had different musical influences that helped shaped the type of musicians we were, or tried to be. But as a band, the biggest influences to our sound were some of the bigger name third wave ska bands who achieved most of their commercial success in the mid-1990s. Specifically, MU330, Skankin Pickle, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Let's Go Bowling and Reel Big Fish, to name a few."
Anderl: "We were also influenced heavily by some of the stuff going on in Dayton at the time. While we were a ska band, we were still at punk shows almost every weekend seeing bands like the Know Nothings, Rod, Don't Call Me Brain, 24 Possible, Legbone, Shrug and really whatever else we could see or get our hands on."
Q: What was the first Krusty Watch Guys show?
Anderl: "We played our first real club in Dayton at Canal Street Tavern in the Dayton Band Playoffs. We lost in the first round to Stonehenge."
Q: What was a typical live set like?
Hackett: "At first, we played a mix of originals and covers but as we evolved and wrote more material, we eventually only played a couple covers."
Anderl: "Even though we played covers, it never sounded like the original. We had to 'ska' everything."
Q: What can folks expect from this reunion of Krusty Watch Guys?
Hackett: "A fun time. You'll get to see a group of guys take one more crack at living out their adolescent dreams of rock stardom. And you will see a close group of friends get another chance to hang out together and do something they love."
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