In 1985, independent artist/animator DEAN A. KENDRICK persuaded two of his compadres, JOHN CARPENDER and JEFF DEMAND, to compose music for his underground stop-motion fantasy "LEFT TO WRITE”. At the time, John was playing drums with approximately a billion rock, reggae, jazz, and blues bands and Jeff was playing the family Optigon with headphones in the wee hours. Both leapt at the prospect of soundtrack dabbling and were injured. With the use and abuse of a 4-track cassette recorder, the team not only created noise for the film, but dribbled out many side projects as well involving improvisation and track layering. Dean then joined this experimental circus adding ZAPPA-esque editing of the compositions to the already nauseous mix, thus creating, as we know them today, THE IRRITANTS. THE IRRITANTS was a description before becoming a title and is derived, of course, from the Saxon word for "cheese”.
Between 1985 and 1992, THE IRRITANTS created four raw, no-budget cassette albums totaling more than 150 cuts. Eight songs were featured in a 25 minute video, "THE IRRITANTS EYE WAX”, completed in 1991 and directed by Dean. Much to the band's surprise, a sick little cult following emerged in the band's native Chicago area. Fans searching for the finest in Trench Variety music found it in the guise of THE IRRITANTS, alternative's alternative sound. The year 1994 saw the completion of "BRICK”, utilizing such advanced recording methods as two 4-track recorders and mix down to HiFi VHS tape. Shocking.
Since then the boys have gone digital, in part. The 2001 release, "BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS", was recorded mostly on ADAT and Sony MiniDisc formats (yes, and some good ol' cassette 4-trackage as well). "SKULLCAPACTION!", the 2015 release, is mostly digital as well and employs Harsh-O-Phonic Sound. Both of these titles also welcomed some more fabulous, disturbed musical artists to the growing and groaning dysfunctional Irritants Family which have helped to take the aural visions of THE IRRITANTS to the cleaners and beyond.
Between 1985 and 1992, THE IRRITANTS created four raw, no-budget cassette albums totaling more than 150 cuts. Eight songs were featured in a 25 minute video, "THE IRRITANTS EYE WAX”, completed in 1991 and directed by Dean. Much to the band's surprise, a sick little cult following emerged in the band's native Chicago area. Fans searching for the finest in Trench Variety music found it in the guise of THE IRRITANTS, alternative's alternative sound. The year 1994 saw the completion of "BRICK”, utilizing such advanced recording methods as two 4-track recorders and mix down to HiFi VHS tape. Shocking.
Since then the boys have gone digital, in part. The 2001 release, "BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS", was recorded mostly on ADAT and Sony MiniDisc formats (yes, and some good ol' cassette 4-trackage as well). "SKULLCAPACTION!", the 2015 release, is mostly digital as well and employs Harsh-O-Phonic Sound. Both of these titles also welcomed some more fabulous, disturbed musical artists to the growing and groaning dysfunctional Irritants Family which have helped to take the aural visions of THE IRRITANTS to the cleaners and beyond.
When DEAN A. KENDRICK isn't daydreaming, he's asleep. Apart from the 200 lb. iron block chained to his ankle to keep him earthbound, he's really just a cerebral file clerk shrouded in bone. Born the year of JFK's assassination and four hours after John's birth, Dean began his attitude with an early lust for fluid DISNEY animation and fantasy, THE BEATLES and PINK FLOYD, and amateur theatrics. Sweetening this with the discovery of FRANK ZAPPA and TOM WAITS, ALFRED HITCHCOCK, STANLEY KUBRICK, and DAVID LYNCH, and obscure foreign animated short subjects, Dean went mad. Living in a box, Dean spits out what he can - experimental animations, coarsely fine art stuffs, and funeral dance hits - all according to the orders in his noodle. Dean is and has always been a lifetime member of himself. Be sure to consume Dean’s artstuffs and animations at DEAN’S IMAGES d’IMPERTINENCE. (MOTION DISCOMFORT, BITE ME I'M HOME, WHAT GIVES?, THE THREE HEMISPHERES OF SANTAPEDE'S VILLAGE, BRICK, HARSH, BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS, SKULLCAPACTION!)
Is he a sleestak? Is he an old bald guy? Yes. Why will he not stop hitting things? Drummer/singer/bassist/guitarist/sleestak JOHN CARPENDER does it all. And by that we mean he hits things. He has been known to play drums in several highly rewarding bands in the Chicago area including TOMORROW THE MOON, OUTRONAUT, and EXPO '76. He has performed, or toured, or recorded, or all of the above with a few notable artists, including BARRELHOUSE CHUCK, MICHAEL McDERMOTT, PHANTOM HELMSMEN, MYSTERY DRIVER, ASWAH GREGGORI AND THE ENFORCERS, ANDON DAVIS SITUATION, TRIGGER GOSPEL, PIE EYED PETE, ROBBIE FULKS, MELVIN TAYLOR, and IKE REILLY. But none of that really matters anymore. He's being very irritating....right now. (MOTION DISCOMFORT, BITE ME I'M HOME, WHAT GIVES?, THE THREE HEMISPHERES OF SANTAPEDE'S VILLAGE, BRICK, HARSH, BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS, SKULLCAPACTION!)
JEFF DEMAND is THE IRRITANT OF AGE and is frequently confused with the late great BERT CONVY. No people do not mistake Jeff for Bert, rather Jeff is just confused about BERT CONVY. When Jeff and Dean first collaborated, they came out with "MONSIEUR HULOT BITES THE ROTATING CAROUSEL OF DEATH” - a piece that thirty years later still plays over and over in Jeff's head. Jeff plays or plays with recorder, piano, keyboards, strings, percussion and just about any musical instrument he can get his hands on. Since moving to Arizona at the turn of the century, Jeff has been fortunate to play with such great musicians in the southwest as THE GREAT DICK SMASH AND THE DICK SMASH PROJECT. Sitting in on open mic nights is another one of Jeff's passions. Jeff is married to THE QUEEN OF IRRITATION, Colleen. Their two little IRRITANTS Kevin and Timmy provide ample irritation for all to enjoy. Jeff's musical influences are GEORGE and IRA, FRANK and BOB, and of course BURT (no not BERT CONVY but BURT BACHARACH - this seems to be where some confusion comes in). Jeff reminds his fans to respect this twirling sphere in space we know as Earth and not kill it or the creatures that inhabit it. Also he encourages everyone to register and vote and as always promote peace and love. (MOTION DISCOMFORT, BITE ME I'M HOME, WHAT GIVES?, THE THREE HEMISPHERES OF SANTAPEDE'S VILLAGE, BRICK, HARSH, BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS, SKULLCAPACTION!)
BILL ALLETZHAUSER, a.k.a. LANCE OHIO, that self-described, silver-tongued devil with a heart of gold can be seen and heard hiding in not-so-plain sight as the chief songwriter, frontman, and beard-washer for that band of indelible accolades, THE HIDERS. Having once been midnight guitarist of sensations ASS PONYS, and peak-season tour guide for the too fab RUBY VILEOS of Cincinnati, Lance is recovering from a rash of nasty hare-lip nightmares while being on-call 24 hours a day as a virtual uvula-care consultant. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS, SKULLCAPACTION!)
Late, great MICKEY BARENDT was a certified looney and a bossawesome engineer with over twenty years of studio and live sound production experience. He was a pro audio consultant with Makin' Music (formerly Gand Music & Sound) and piloted BLUE STUDIO MUSIC, both in Chicagoland. Mickey's client list included ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND, BILL KREUTZMANN TRIO, DONOVAN, MUNCKMUSIC, PHIL GINGREY, 16 CANDLES, BLUE ROAD, THE MAUDS, LOUIE ZAGORAS, BEN BUELTMANN, VELVET VORTEX, and notwithorwithoutstanding, The IRRITANTS. Now at peace in another dimension, Mickey has plenty of "time" to focus on rebuilding his handmade, giant motorized teacup. (HARSH, SKULLCAPACTION!)
DAVE CHAMBERLAIN (left) and MIKE HANCOCK, or TASTE AND RELISH as they are known at the convent, are pure music junkies. Dave, having completed a stint as drummer for every band in Ohio including and not limited to HEART OF PALM, he is now sporting the title KING WANNAMONDO: YOU BRING IT, I BEAT IT somewhere in Nebraska. Humor him, please. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS, SKULLCAPACTION!)
Mike, lost and founding member of sadly defunct, improvisational, high-seas adventurers MYSTERY MARY, is also a main ingredient of CLUCK THE HEN and HEART OF PALM in the Cincinnati musical breakfast cereal. A multi-instrumentalist like his compadres and a multi-mentalist like his imaginary friend PEDRO, Mike continually exercises his creative offerings until they are sweaty and need a shower. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
Mike, lost and founding member of sadly defunct, improvisational, high-seas adventurers MYSTERY MARY, is also a main ingredient of CLUCK THE HEN and HEART OF PALM in the Cincinnati musical breakfast cereal. A multi-instrumentalist like his compadres and a multi-mentalist like his imaginary friend PEDRO, Mike continually exercises his creative offerings until they are sweaty and need a shower. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
AMY CLUXTON is VACHE FOU (pronounced VAH-SHAY-FOW as in "foul" or "fowl," not the correct French pronunciation FOO as in, "I ain't French, you fool!"), or so she says. A winner of the prestigious "KRINOS" award, Vache can be heard pluckin', truckin', and shuckin' for quintessential quiddity CLUCK THE HEN over Cincinnati way. She also gives tap, disco, and sort-of-like-the-moon-walk-dance-but-much-more-impertinent lessons and enjoys baking liquids. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
PAUL CZARNECKI is the CZAR. Only he knows why. Born in Detroit 14 days after the 1967 riots ended, Paul continued his inherent social unrest as bass player and vocalist for BARBARA BILLINGSLY'S OINTMENT, TARNATIONS (with fellow irritants Mr. Carpender and Mr. Immonen) and TWO-FISTED COOL. Paul would often perform behind life-sized cutouts of actresses who portrayed fictional television mothers including his favorite, ESTHER ROLLE. "Good Times!"- his tireless excuse. (SKULLCAPACTION!)
ALI EDWARDS is no stranger to music as well as being no stranger than true. Formerly of Cincinnati's SNAGGLETOOTH, and front-runner and pole vaulter of that magnificent musical marinade RUBY VILEOS, Ali now grasps the reins of runaway horse-traders THE KISS ME EVERLASTING, a brilliant indie musical force on, under, or near the Ohio River. In accordance with her religion, she respectfully requests that you do not eat and talk simultaneously, and that you purposefully confuse her with undercover FBI agent, RODEO QUEEN. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
STEVE GERLACH can tame a chickenbull snake - other people just call it an electric guitar. He can also be irritating. He's a genre-spanner, having played with artists from JOHN CALE (VELVET UNDERGROUND) to RALPH’S WORLD (Disney), TOMMY KEENE, THE MOST DANGEROUS RACE, LIAM HAYES AND PLUSH and probably your cousin out in LA. In the Chicagoland music scene, Steve, along with fellow irritant Mr. Carpender, have helmed PHANTOM HELMSMEN and have driven MYSTERY DRIVER and TOMMORROW THE MOON through the ears of audiences in grand rock fashion over the years. And OUTRONAUT provides twisted crime jazz for those who need a soundtrack. And for those who care, Steve can transform himself into an entertaining raccoon-head for prearranged, post-apocalyptic Grand Opening parties. (BITE ME I’M HOME, WHAT GIVES?, BRICK, HARSH, SKULLCAPACTION!)
STEVE GIRTON plays drums and canasta with Cincinnati's rock minstrels, SISTERN. Former soundman for AFGHAN WHIGS and former of little clay ashtrays, Steve can be engaged for sound production at his recording facility and barbecue reception hall THE LIVING ROOM in Cincinnati (Well, it's actually in Newport, Kentucky but don't tell him that), as well as engaged in telephone conversation about the names he's given to his homemade ashtrays. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
JOHN IMMONEN is no longer of this Earth or Pennsylvania where he was hatched, but when he was, he could shred guitar strings like no other. Having been the only known invertebrate with a spine, John would tear up numerous dumps ‘round Chicagoland as guitarist and vocalist for the bands YOUTH IN ASIA, TARNATIONS (along with Mr. Carpender and Mr. Czarnecki), TWO-FISTED COOL and WOTAN. In his spare time, John would sculpt hundreds of towering "SUPERDAWG" hot-dog-people figurines "just in case". (SKULLCAPACTION!)
RICH MULLEN is not a real Canadian Mountie but he plays one on T.V. As well as being a pronounced guitar diddler, Rich has been caught engineering and providing psychological support at EDGE SHOW-TEK, Chicago. He devises sonic scaping for the needful, and sonic scraping for the corners. Rich is secretly involved with the band PUNCH, and not with the band JUDY. Not publicly anyway. Oh, and he's not involved with the NOT band anymore, either, or. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
WIN NOLL actually did win her first name in a prestigious Verb Vs. Noun competition (the official outcome still listed as "lost"). Though not yet captured on video, Win has been known to inspire Chicago tavern patrons to spontaneously float above the floor with her sweetest vocal rainbows via WIN NOLL AND THE ROCKIN' SOULS and BUDDHA BLUE BAND. (SKULLCAPACTION!)
WILL RILEY has been a viscous, temporal musician ever since he was knee-high to a grass stain. Composer, and condemner of posing, Will has also been called a Hollywood FILM SOUND SUPERVISOR and MIXER in Hollywood, which is, of course, redundant. Check out his world at virtualfilmlot.com where he oversees such duties as exposing hypocrisies in The American Dream as well as turning mattresses. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
PAUL C. SCOGLIO, noted author of "THE SNOW COW: AN UDDER-ABLY COLD ACCOUNT OF AMERICA'S FORGOTTEN BEAST," has been a French horn virtuoso for minutes. Co-creator and co-performer of the infamous "DEATHLAND" sketch, Paul has been an irritant since the light ages. (MOTION DISCOMFORT, WHAT GIVES?, HARSH, BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
ED STEVENSON (or EDDY BABY as he doesn't like to be called) has always wanted to be a Pacific-Northwestern fake-fur trapper but his parents made him play rock music in Chicago instead. Among his regrets are performing "them damn keyboards" with such Chicagoland institutions as ROLLOVER, THE SMOKING FISH, and DARK STAR ORCHESTRA. Ed's favorite prize accomplishment is the ability to saddle a dead horse in the dark, if needed, and he strives to one day have scientifically verified the Great Snipe neckbone he procured through an untellable tale. (SKULLCAPACTION!)
When JEFF STOUT isn't being reprimanded, he's being SONIC ELF. Known prominently for his irascible, audacious, oblique, cryptic vagueness, Sonic continually attempts to reach new heights in his quest to become KING OF THE UNKNOWN WORLD through the power of want. He also likes GRAMPY cartoons. Sonic Elf has been found playing with the likes of INSECT CLICKS, SONIC FARNICLE, and as DWIGHT ENDLESSNESS with soul provider, LUNA WATERS. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS, SKULLCAPACTION!)
WOODY TRINKLE, MAGIC JAYBONE, or JAY WILSON as his keeper likes to call him, has never seen daylight. A constant, consummate contributor to the magical dregs of Cincinnati's musical life, Jay adds his own 31 flavors to the likes of such boffo bands as HEART OF PALM and CLUCK THE HEN. He enjoys the fiercely competitive ancient sport of Paintball Haiku and sleeps standing up. (BUTTERFLIES AND ALIENS)
