>>PREVIEW
LIFE LIKE COBRA
Saturday, March 4
The Castle
Everyone has a guilty pleasure. Half this city seems to have lost their marbles over Madonna’s "Hung Up," and if that’s not a guilty pleasure, I don’t know what is. Don’t get me wrong – I’ll shake my ass on the Broken City dance floor to that freakin’ ABBA ripoff just like the next scenester, but for me, my guilty pleasure is much closer to home.
Calgary’s Life Like Cobra has all the makings of my next "Hung Up" style obsession – hook laden guitar lines, driving dance rock beats, and an über cute frenetic front man. But the thing is, there’s nothing to feel guilty about. The musical meat is there.
Guitarist Scott Nickless is no stranger to Calgary audiences, as bassist for The Ramblin’ Ambassadors for more than four years. Keyboardist Robbie Maxwell sings opera and vocalist Mark Mills makes his living as a songwriter for a production company.
Not that what these guys do for a living defines what they offer up on the stage. Tim Durell, the drummer, was very elusive about his day job. With his intensity behind the kit, though, I wouldn’t be surprised if he broke kneecaps for a living. You’d know Durell from his days of aviator caps and goggles as the drummer for the Cripple Creek Fairies. It was, in fact, during a Prairie tour with Agriculture Club that Nickless and Durell first hooked up.
But the hidden gem in this band is bassist Ron Bakalik – a hyper manic performer on and offstage. A rockabilly bassist in the past, Bakalik gives the high energy propulsion to Life Like Cobra’s shows. Together, these gents are an entertaining group. After a two-and-a-half hour interview spanning the alcohol spectrum at the Drum on a Saturday night, it’s apparent that even though they come from every corner of the music scene, when they get together, things happen.
"I’ve never been in a band before where the members click as much as we do," says Bakalik. "You know, I’ve played in anywhere from eight to 10 bands over the years and the cool thing about this band is that everyone just shuts up and lets things happen. It clicks. The music isn’t difficult to play. It’s not a challenge. It’s just fun, and that’s what I want."
True, the fun quotient is high in Life Like Cobra. Over numerous pints and a few vodka Red Bulls, it became apparent early on that there wasn’t a pretentious bone in anyone’s body. According to Life Like Cobra, it’s just about the music.
"Ron and I have known each other for quite some time," says Nickless. "We just ended up meeting three other people… who, like us, just wanted to play music with no expectations, grand visions, game plans – any of that crap. Just have a band where each individual does what he thinks is right for the music."
With such disparate musical tastes (Durell listens to Slipknot, Nickless listens to Devo and Bakalik listens to everything from "carebear cuddle pop to psychobilly" – his words not mine), you’d think letting everyone do their own thing would be a recipe for a short band life, but Nickless says that’s the way it works.
"I suppose we’re selfish in a way. Everyone has a different way of looking at the music so we just try to let the music move forward on its own."
Lucky for them, things seem to have worked out pretty well. They’re planning their first album – soon to be recorded in their top secret rehearsal space. None of the band members specified exactly, but somewhere in the basement of a Calgary meat packing plant, Life Like Cobra gets together three nights a week. Bakalik’s convinced the place is haunted from the hundreds of dead cows that met their nasty demise at the end of a meat hook and by the glint in his eye, I almost believed him.
Mills, on the other hand says it’s one of the best parts about being in the band. That and the fact they have a time-out room.
"We have a time-out room at our rehearsals where we send people that need to reflect," laughs Mills. "But really the best part of this band is that we’re mature. We respect other people’s schedules. If someone can’t make a rehearsal, it’s not a big deal. I feel the same way about the band now as I did when I joined. All the extra crap doesn’t matter."
That easygoing nature translates onstage as Mills is a born front man with a style akin to Jim Morrison or Mick Jagger. Admitting to never having really listened to The Doors or The Rolling Stones, Mills makes the comparison difficult, but with his penchant for polyester pants and flashy shirts, the likeness is unmistakable.
"I don’t think about trying to be like anybody," says Mills. "The moment I start thinking about what I’m doing onstage, I get awkward. So the best way for me is to not really care about what other people think. I love what I’m doing,, so nothing else should matter."
When it all comes down to it, according to Life Like Cobra, rock ’n’ roll is and will always be fun – if it does what it’s supposed to do. They may not have plans for world domination, but as Nickless insists, there’s always room for at least one lofty goal.
"I was in Disney World a couple of years ago and I went into the Virgin Record Megastore and there was a Ramblin’ Ambassadors album there. That’s what I want for this band." |
Copyright ©2006 FFWD. All rights reserved.