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T-Minus Band : General Write-Ups and Interviews
Black
and White - Set List 11-17-2005 Set
List T-Minus Band After the holiday dinner, spectacular family disputes at the table, and then leftovers later that afternoon, Birmingham residents may find an evening of post-Cure, Lennon-esque, vaguely Roger McGuinnish psychedelic pop-rock quite restorative. After all, it’s not like there are any decent ball games that night. Seated from left to right, Matt Patton (also of Model Citizen and currently playing with Taylor Hollingsworth); Tim Boykin, local guitar god and former member of “insert band name here”; Troy T., front man and multi-instrument subgenius behind The T-Minus Band; drummer Jason Lucia, also of Bleeding Hearts Choir and 13 Ghosts; keyboard player Ken Moore, also of 13 Ghosts and Ferocious Bubbles. (The Nick, Thursday, November 24.) —David Pelfrey click here to see the original article. Local
Music As is Troy T (the ‘T’ stands for Thompson), a visionary in his own right who has been purveying his peculiar blend of psychedelic classic rock around these parts for quite awhile now. Maybe you’ve read or heard about him. He’s the guy who, in the past couple of years, has self-recorded and released two of the best albums you’ve never heard: Technostalgia in 2001 and Four Legs to Three in 2003. He’s the guy who named his project T-Minus Band because his name is ‘T’ and he’s minus a band. Or was minus a band. After some bumpy rides and a long streak of band abstinence, Troy T is back fronting a live band for the first time in years. Like that of the Asylum Street Spankers, Troy T’s music has proved difficult to categorize. It seems like everyone who hears his records — music journalists included — thinks they sound like something else. Even Troy T’s website is vague, describing his music as, “A true D.I.Y. project that defies labeling.” Normally I scoff when musicians insist their music can’t be labeled; it’s a cliché that can usually be easily debunked. But Troy T’s music is slippery, a changeling that jumps genres from song to song. “I’ve heard I sound like just about everyone,” Troy replies after I toss out the name Super Furry Animals. He also sounds a little bit like R.E.M.— in fact, he lived for a short while in Athens, Ga., home of the popular quartet. And speaking of bands from Athens, maybe he sounds a little bit like Olivia Tremor Control (due to their shared Beatles influence). However, he could just as easily be described as Pink Floyd by way of the Flaming Lips. Troy T’s sound has changed since recruiting a band. I met him on a Monday afternoon at his house, where the assembled T-Minus Band was about to begin its weekly rehearsal. Looking around, I see four other grizzled and tired-looking individuals ready to practice. Troy T is not exactly minus a band anymore. The addition of these musicians has been a long time coming, and what inspired their absence is an interesting story. It starts with Kilgore Trout, Troy T’s college band that was written up in Rolling Stone. “It was a section they were doing on real college bands around the country. We were one of the 10,” Troy T remembers. “They called me and said, ‘Today is your lucky day.’” I ask him if that turned out to be true. “Well, it opened a lot of doors,” he says. But those doors didn’t stay open long, and the band didn’t capitalize on their moment in the sun. As a consequence, the group disbanded, and Troy T went on to play in a number of equally forgettable bands. Forgettable to us, maybe, but not to Troy T. “When those bands broke up, it fucking hurt,” he says. “After a few of those, I didn’t want to play in bands anymore, because it was so painful. But I did want to continue playing music.” I don’t want to psychoanalyze the guy, but it seems like he has some abandonment issues, evidenced by the fact that to avoid future breakups, he went into a solipsistic exile. After a few years, Troy T got tired of playing by himself and recruited what is quite possibly the most accomplished array of rock musicians this side of Damn Yankees. The group is currently rounded out with Ken Moore on keys, Jason Lucia on drums, Matt Patton on bass, and elder statesman Tim Boykin on guitar. You know that expression about how successful people surround themselves with other successful people? Well, Troy T is hoping that’s true in spades. “I’ve always dreamed of playing with people who are better than me,” he says. “I want to be the weak link. I want to be the worst person in the band.” Troy T is currently recording a new album, this time with a crack band providing input and emotional guidance. If the rehearsal I sat in on is any indicator, the album will be another good one, featuring more musical hodgepodge from the complicated brain of Troy Thompson, a self-professed worrier, the local scene’s Woody Allen. Click here to see the original article. T-Minus
Revealed The T-Minus band will perform at The Nick on Friday, July 1, beginning at God knows what hour. Front man Troy T has previously confined most of his time to being a studio wizard, playing all the instruments and handling all the production in the comfort of his home. The results have been an amazingly accomplished mix of psychedelic pop, anthem rock, and music that recalls The Cure, The Flaming Lips, The Byrds, Foghat, and The Magnetic Fields. Troy agreed to participate in Black & White's quiz, which is a scintillating hybrid of The Proust Questionnaire and Inside the Actor's Studio.
F**k. What is your favorite sound? The sound of a girl saying yes. Or silence. What is your least favorite sound? That damn alarm clock. And Mexican music, the kind that has a sort of polka rhythm. It's awful. There are some people in my neighborhood who pump that stuff all day. Very loud. I hate it. What television character or personality do you identify with right now? Larry David. The stuff that gets on his nerves also gets on my nerves. I don't go around telling lies like he does, but in almost every other way we're the same person. Describe your dream job. Hello? Try "musician." Why do hipsters hate sports? It's because they are too cool for football. I mean, why do hipsters hate anything? They feel superior. But I probably can't give a definitive answer, since I'm not the voice of hipsterdom. Far from it. A very bad music writer once said that Roger Daltrey and the microphone "were as one." What is your relationship with the microphone? Timid at first, but now it's a full-on love affair. I think Beck said it all when he said he had two turntables and a microphone. You know, down there.That's where it's at. Your house is on fire, and you can grab only three CDs on your way out the door. What do you rescue? I don't accept your premise. CDs are small. You wouldn't grab three, you'd grab a box of 50 or something. I live in a different century, anyway. I don't have many CDs. CDs are the old paradigm. I have files. I'd just grab the hard drive on my computer. It has a week's worth of music, nonstop, 24-7, you never hear the same song twice. Do you think it's fair to blame the Manson murders entirely on Beach Boy Dennis Wilson or Terry Melcher? Dude, I don't even know who Terry Melcher is. I thought we were supposed to blame Paul McCartney. What is the worst Beatles song? "Get Back," maybe. It's hard to say. Something off of Let It Be. It's probably some Paul song, whatever it is. Using one each: keyboard player, lead guitar, second guitar, drums, bass, and lead vocal, build your own supergroup. Man, I don't know how to do that. Maybe Bonham on drums, but that might be too heavy. Two guitars, you say? How about Willie Nelson and Jerry Garcia? That would do it. That could make you cry. What is overrated right now? "American Idol," reality shows, getting voted off the island—and I've never even seen that show. I'm just sick of hearing about it. What has always been overrated? Radio. And Eric Clapton. Is it possible for your band, as it is currently comprised, to do a Ladies-Only show? Hell yeah. Sounds great. The estrogen level would be out of control. What's the best music performance you have seen recently? They surprised me, but it would have to be The Dixie Chicks at City Stages. Those girls can play their instruments, and they can sing, and they like to do it, obviously. Plus the estrogen level was high at that show, too. After one set they had another group of players come out there, and the Dixie Chicks did about 20 minutes of straight bluegrass with those guys, and it was awesome. Is there anyone in your band who needs some "Queer Eye" assistance? Yes, probably me. What behavior do you dislike the most? I hate it when the audience goes outside. What is your favorite thing in the whole wide world right now? Performing before an appreciative audience. It's the best feeling in the world. Who is the best frontman in rock 'n' roll? The first thing that comes to mind is Mick Jagger. But that's tempered by the fact that the Stones just announced another tour, and they're all old as f**k. They look like gremlins or something. They're all wrinkly. What's the main problem with this interview? You're asking me pop culture questions. I don't really keep up. Click here to see the original article. from
Black and
White - Setlist T-minus Band For their first CD, Technostalgia, and for most of the new release, Four Legs to Three, Birmingham’s T-minus band is Troy T: writing the music, playing the instruments, and having a field day in the studio á la Todd Rundgren. Troy T is all over the pop music map, and the map is mainly a detailed, in-relief study of AM radio (which, today, is not unlike a map of Atlantis). His efforts bring to mind Beck, except that Troy T forgoes hipster, post-modern flourishes and plays it straight. The results include a phenomenal arena-rock gem of falsetto vocals and rumbling guitars called “Take the Ride,” a kind of Summer Hits salute to Foghat. There’s also more than a little Harry Nilsson and Jeff Lynne floating throughout, and keener ears may detect pop elements as disparate as Paul McCartney and The Magnetic Fields, or Syd Barrett and The Flaming Lips. All of this is connected, if rather tenuously, with delicate strands of New Wave, psychedelia, and electronic ambience. Still more intriguing, the new CD has huge swathes of late-period Byrds layered throughout, although Troy T claims that no one has ever mentioned Roger McGuinn in any reference to T-minus Band. Clearly, Troy T is either hanging around with the wrong crowd, or he’s just not getting out of the studio enough. That’s a good thing, of course, but this business of a live show is disconcerting. As two stunningly clever, astonishingly assured CDs reveal, the T-minus Band exists to provide us with the joys of superbly crafted pop recordings. Gathering up Eric E (Kilgore Trout, Tallboy), Mikey D (13 Ghosts), and Tony Rodio (The Pedestrians) as a backing band for a live gig is therefore a brave move. If, however, they can bring seventy or eighty percent of Troy T’s studio magic to the stage, be advised that it will be the first great show by a local pop band in Birmingham’s history. (Thursday, July 24, at The Nick.)—David Pelfrey from Bham weekly Weekly Picks 7-17-2003 ONE MAN AND HIS BAND: Troy T was tired of bands. He was tired of how they always fell apart after disagreements over style or song-writing. He was tired of ego. But mostly he was tired of not making music. So he struck out on his own and decided to write some, and play it, and record it, and produce it. What started as a solo experiment turned into the T-minus Band, but for awhile that name was misleading. With last years release of Technostalgia, the T-minus "Band" was still just Troy, but now he's got a new CD and three friends backing him up. Four Legs to Three will be officially released July 24, with a celebratory show at The Nick. You can hear how the man and his band move from acoustic rock to pop steeped in electronica and disco licks. The Park Bench Trio will open. 252-3831 or www.thenickrocks.com T-minus
Band are a musically excellent alt-rock band from Birmingham, Alabama...
Drawing from a well of quality influences like The Kinks and Bowie,
their music is slightly ironic, camp but always wonderfully intelligent
and inspired... As well as being amazed that an American act could
get such a quintessentially ENGLISH sound, I was awestruck at the
artful brilliance of their songwriting... Try the apocalyptic moody
beauty of 2084 or the witty, sardonic Mr. Big Boy and if you like
quality pop/rock with a twist, be prepared to marvel.... Interview
from fleabomb.com by: view
original interview here "When are you going to put an MP3 on your website for me?"
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