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FRED'S FINEST: BACK IN THE GROOVE
Elephant Boy reunites for a hometown concert
Date published: 7/23/2009
BY JONAS BEALS New York has The Ramones, Los Angeles has Guns N' Roses, Minneapolis has Prince and Fredericksburg has Elephant Boy. Or Fredericksburg had Elephant Boy. The band tasted fame with a major record deal in 2000; but the label folded, and Elephant Boy was left in the lurch. No plane crashes, no rehab stints, no breakdowns, no wife stealing. The rock band with a habit of mashing genres put its hometown on the map in the '90s, but faded into silence in 2002. "It was sort of undecided," guitarist Brian Coltrane said of the breakup. "Geoff [Leach, lead singer] had a baby. We had cliche problems with our record label. It was just kind of deflating." It was also a letdown for local fans who had grown accustomed to hearing top-drawer party music on a regular basis. For a generation of downtown bar-hoppers, Elephant Boy was the soundtrack of choice. Seven years later, Elephant Boy lives on in legend--a code word traded between local musicians who remember when the Irish Brigade's walls would sweat with the dancing funk of a capacity crowd. It could happen again. Elephant Boy is back. MAKING A SCENE Tomorrow night, Elephant Boy will open for Blues Traveler at Celebrate Virginia Live. It is sure to be another highlight in a career that has spanned two decades. High School friends Coltrane and bassist Karl Steinbach formed the band in 1989. The group spent a few years writing songs and practicing before they started hitting the local club and college circuit. In 1993, 19-year-old singer Geoff Leach replaced Dave Fera, who left to form his own band. "I saw an ad for a singer in the City Paper," Leach said. "It said: 'Band in Fredericksburg has gigs, studio, big-ass truck and a 154-quart cooler.'" It was the cooler that caught his eye. Steinbach and Coltrane spent the next few months educating Leach by immersing him in Elephant Boy lyrics and influences like Stevie Wonder and Steely Dan. "He was such a punk when he joined the band," Coltrane said of Leach, "but he had pipes out the wazoo." The charismatic Leach has his own opinion, conjuring up visions of David Lee Roth. "I'm a sleazy game show host who can hold a tune," he said.
Date published: 7/23/2009
Elephant Boyz -Friday at CVL
(posted by
halloweener
, July 23, 2009 9:05 am)
oh HELL yeah.
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