Wasting no time

No Crime Done, Deb Talan, and the Phoenix Band Guide

by Brian Goslow

Few bands have ever jumped out of the starting gate as fast as No Crime Done, who've spent little time in establishing themselves as one of the area's rising rock bands since forming last August. In the span of six short months, they've gone from their first practice to receiving radio airplay for "Hot Green Mud," a raw and risqué number recorded at their first show at the Lucky Dog

Music Hall in November, to a slew of bookings in New York City. Now, No Crime Done is on a mission to find out the realm of their musical potential as quickly as possible. This Friday, they celebrate the release of their self-titled debut CD at Mulligan's.

"This is only the beginning," says vocalist and guitarist Houston Andrew. "We have a lot planned and the music seems to be appealing to people."

The band's line-up features Andrew, who writes all of the group's lyrics, bassist Gregg Parker, who played with Epic in the mid-1990s, and drummer Kirt M. All three members help compose the band's music. "Most of the stuff comes from us jamming around," says Parker, a/k/a "The Greggman," co-host of Worcester Rocks. "No one member writes the music, it just ends up blending together." Andrew says the group gets its backbone from Parker's Chili Pepper-esque bass-playing and Kirt's intense focus on the hardcore scene.

"We have songs that are political in a way," Andrew says, talking between classes at Worcester State College. "I like writing what's on my mind. Some of the lyrics may seem kind of trivial, but a lot of thought goes into it. I dig deep for my lyrics.

"I wrote `Hole' about a friend who lives his life in the fast lane and always ends up in the same place. He has a lot of financial assets, but moves around a lot and doesn't get ahead." Andrew himself had to pull himself out of an emotional hole after two heart-shattering events. "To be honest with you, I had a daughter who passed away four and a half years ago; that led to me splitting with my ex-girlfriend."

He deals with the pain through his lyrics, and although they're intensely personal, they don't over ride the music. "Layed in Lime" is about how he dealt with the grief of his daughter's death. "I moved to New York City at the time and I talk about the guilt and blaming myself. `Just Standing' deals with the mother of my daughter. The chorus is `Every time I try to breath/She leaves/Just when I think everything's all right/She leaves again." Andrew used his ill-fated attempts to heal the relationship to write "Save Me," which he calls No Crime Done's most commercial song. "The chorus goes, `Run and save me.' It's about a relationship I compare to a negative drug that doesn't do anything for your life. When you're in it, you're in a euphoria, but you know it's not good for you."

On "No Mercy," Andrew's vocals are a mix of cowboy Jon Bon Jovi and a soul-strutting Hendrix, his guitar playing off Parker's infectious "lead bass" riffs. If you like Creed, you'll love this track. "It's about someone who can't get away from a person -- they're always on their mind and they can't be happy without them," Andrew says. "They're co-dependents."

Of course, when a male band sings about negative relationships, they risk being seen as insensitive. Andrew's concerned that in trying to cleanse his soul, the real message is misunderstood as he searches for his own inner peace. "We're sincere people and we're not [insensitive]. Everybody gets in a situation [the breakup of a relationship] like that."

The positive message is you can move forward, and Andrew and No Crime Done are doing just that. Now that the CD's finished and ready for release, they're making plans for a summer tour. Why waste time? "Kirt's a driving force and he likes to move quickly," says Andrew. "Sometimes, when you move quickly, you miss steps, but I don't think we're doing that."

You can pick up the CD this Friday at Mulligan's or through the Internet at www.NoCrimeDone.com.

worth crowing about

Worcester music fans have a change to catch a rising star this Saturday when Deb Talan appears at the Green Rooster Coffeehouse. Last week, Talan received two nominations for NEMO's 14th Annual Boston Music Awards in the New Singer/Songwriter and Debut Singer/Songwriter Album (for Something Burning) categories. The winners will be announced on April 19 at the Orpheum Theater in Boston.

"I was just hoping to get one just mostly to feel part of the music scene now and that's an acknowledgment of it," says an obviously proud Talan over breakfast at Lucky's Cafe. She had woken up at six a.m. to perform selections from Something Burning on WCUW's CrossTracks.

Her debut solo album holds the kind of promise that excites music lovers looking for a long time fix (think of the first time you heard Ani Difranco or Suzanne Vega's "Luka"). It suggests that Talan will be making us happy with her music for a long time.

She moved to Boston after spending most of the 1990s in Oregon, where she was a member of Hummingbird, who played throughout the Pacific Northwest. "We were the same group together for six years -- that was one of the defining facts about us. It was a pop rock band and it was a folk band. I wrote all the lyrics. In our early years we were a dance band with a lot of energy."

Having grown up in the Amherst area, Talan always thought she would eventually move back east. When a long relationship with a band member ended, so did the band and she returned to her home state to finish work on her solo CD and introduce herself to the Boston open mic scene.

The 12-track Something Burning (Happyhead) is one of the better debut acoustic-based albums in a long time; it's not a reach to compare her to her musical influences: Jonatha Brooke, Shawn Colvin, Joni Mitchell, and Suzanne Vega. Her words, which read like poetry, sit suspended in animation when she explores the aforementioned break-up in "The Darkest Season." However, it's not so personal you can't recognize your own experiences in her songs.

"I'm conscientious with my writing. I want what I say to come from a place that's true but I want it where people can attach it to their own experiences. I hope it's bigger than that because it's intended to be.

"Most of the time, the subject matter knows who they are," says Talan, adding she's inspired no negative responses from her soul-cleansing. "So far, so good."

Every time Talan sits down to compose a new song, the circumstances are a little bit different. One thing stays the same -- she's a happy homebody. "I sit down with a yellow legal pad -- it used to be little pieces of papers because it was less intimidating. I like to be home when I write. It's a quiet safe feeling of space and ends up good. I put a lot of attention to my personal surroundings and I make my nest."

For the melancholy "Gladdest Thing," Talan utilized part of Edna St. Vincent Millay's poem, "Afternoon on a Hill," which had been a present from her mom. "It was a lot of fun. Her poems were so musical already. The song came together quickly. That poem really spoke to me and I tapped into the energy of the poem."

Every Monday and Tuesday night from 5 to 7 p.m., she performs at Starbucks in Harvard Square. "It's a training ground and I've actually gotten people who've seen me there to come to my shows. It's challenging to play for people who just come for coffee." Where some performers will go to any extreme to attract an audience's attention, Talan sticks to her music and leaves the comic routines to others. "It's hard to do my own thing and be engaging. I write for people who are already interested in listening to the music."

Hopefully, we'll be hearing plenty more from Talan in the years to come.

a band guide of our own

This spring, for the first time, the Worcester Phoenix will be printing its own band guide for the Central Massachusetts/MetroWest area. The guide is intended to serve as a handy reference for club owners, booking agents, radio stations, music journalists, and any one else looking to get in touch with a band or to hire performers for their event, nightclub, or college campus to track you down as easily as possible. The cost is free, all you have to do is supply your band name, mailing address, name of band contact or booking agent, phone number, E-mail and web page address, and a short description of your music to us no later than March 1. Send your vital facts to bgoslow[a]phx.com, fax them to (508) 795-0439, or mail them to the Worcester Phoenix Band Guide, 108 Grove Street, Suite 18, Worcester, MA 01605-2651.

Brian Goslow can be reached at bgoslow[a]phx.com.

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