Personnel: Skid Marks, vocals, acoustic guitar; Michael Jiaras, guitar;
Dave Jordan, guitar; Alan Holden, bass; Larry Beers, drums; George McCrae, keyboards.
Formed: 1984, but the current core has been together since 1987. Brothers Bob and Greg Marsh, keyboards/sax and drums respectively, left last fall. Beers joined in January, and McCrae was just added for the group`s upcoming tour.
Sound: ”It`s a combination of different elements,” Jordan says. ”On the broad wall of bands I suppose we`re somewhere in there near the Psychedelic Furs or the Smithereens, but I think this record is probably a bit more mainstream than most postmodern groups. It`s rock `n` roll-that`s the best I can do.”
Influences: Jordan cites Gustav Mahler, artist David Hockney, filmmaker Stanley Kubrick and Led Zeppelin as his influences. ”There are things that I learn from Kubrick`s films about tempo and timing,” he says, adding that other band members also listen to the Rolling Stones and various rap groups.
Songwriting: A group effort. ”Usually a couple people bring in what Larry calls a `nugget,` and then we (tick) the guy off by changing it and turning it into a Way Moves song,” said Jordan, who likens the process to
”group therapy, sort of.”
In-concert cover versions: Aerosmith`s ”Sweet Emotion,” the Rolling Stones` ”Happy,” Sweet`s ”Ballroom Blitz.”
Namesake: ”We opened a book of Chinese philosophy, the `Tao Te Ching,`
randomly, chose a page, read a passage, and those were the last three words of the passage,” Jordan said. ”It seemed to fit. The `way` is what Taoists refer to as their spiritual direction or the essence of their religion. `The way moves` means that it`s not a constant, linear course.” ”Favor and Disgrace,” the band`s new album title, also comes from the ”Tao Te Ching.” Memorable concert experience: The band played at its highest altitude in Aspen, Colo. ”We were taking oxygen between sets,” Jordan said.
Extracurricular activities: Holden and Marks played in the minor league systems of, respectively, baseball`s Texas Rangers and hockey`s St. Louis Blues.
Recordings: ”The Way Moves” came out in January 1989 on Chameleon Records, distributed domestically by Capitol. ”Favor and Disgrace,” also on Chameleon, was due to hit the stores this week.
Goals: ”To tour and have a good time,” Jordan said. ”I guess our goal is to have tea with the queen.”
Next appearance: Saturday, a record release party at Cabaret Metro.
