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Loaded Gun
DEVIL DOLL From the darkness, emerges a beautiful flower. Former WHITE ZOMBIE bassist, SEAN YSEULT, returned to her Southern roots in NEW ORLEANS with fellow NEW YORK CITY rocker RIK SLAVE (MAN SCOUTS OF AMERICA) in 2002, to tap into the haunted FLANNERY O'CONNOR deep-fried gothic magic that inspired YSEULT as a kid—while incorporating that NYC LOWER EAST SIDE energy that helped catapult the bassist into the mainstream during the mid to late '90s.
The result: ROCK CITY MORGUE, one of the more promising rock 'n' roll monsters to come out of the Southeast this year.
The foursome—YSEULT, SLAVE, guitarist JOHNNY BRASHEAR and drummer KEITH HAJJAR—plan to raise the dead on Sunday, May 8 at THE HANDLEBAR, 319 N. Tarragona St.
"With WHITE ZOMBIE, we were literally in the living room basement with rats trying to make music," YSEULT says, oddly nostalgic. "We started from the bottom of the barrel and worked our way up. Starting over with a new band, I know it will never again be as bad as it was for me in the '80s. At least I'm not starting from scratch."
ROB ZOMBIE's ex-gal pal says NEW ORLEANS is a killer fit with ROCK CITY MORGUE's B-horror film goth sensibilities.
"The city reminds me of how the EAST VILLAGE used to be," she spills to LOADED GUN, phoning from her Big Easy home. She adds that her new band is a whole different animal compared to WHITE ZOMBIE. "Our vocalist RIK SLAVE has a really unusual way of singing and we just write the songs around that."
Fusing the creepy sinew of haunting piano, crushing guitars and pounding drums with the spirit of perfectly crafted songs, ROCK CITY MORGUE—who has already performed live with GREEN DAY, THE PIXIES, CRAMPS, X and the BUZZCOCKS—literally brings the dark side of 'Nawlins to life.
"There's this energy about the FRENCH QUARTER that you can't explain," the vamp muses. "It's the kind of place that seems to be nice and pretty on the surface—but has a dark, oozing underbelly trying desperately to come out."
CBGB DIRT To give you some insight into our sick and twisted minds, both YSEULT and LOADED GUN spent their adult lives growing up on the mean rock 'n' roll streets of MANHATTAN's LOWER EAST SIDE and EAST VILLAGE.
In fact, that rat-infested basement YSEULT referred to earlier was only a few blocks away from LOADED GUN's old bat cave.
"I moved to DELANCY and CLINTON in '84, and I remember how bad that part of town was back then," the bassist insists. "Now, there are all of these boutique shops and trendy restaurants. It's terrifying what that area has become."
As we reported last month, LOADED GUN's old BOWERY stomping ground, COUNTRY BLUEGRASS BLUES & OTHER MUSIC —known around the world as CBGB's—may close this August due to owing $91,000 in back rent.
Club owner HILLY KRISTAL, who in '73 transformed what was once a HELL'S ANGELS hotspot into what is regarded as the birthplace of punk—serving as the hub for the RAMONES, PATTI SMITH, BLONDIE, TELEVISION and hundreds of others artists through the years, including WHITE ZOMBIE—says he'll fight for as long as he can to keep CBGB's open.
Heading for rock's pet cemetery? Not so fast.
YSEULT, who was active with the NYC underground scene in the late '80s before WHITE ZOMBIE signed to GEFFEN, says her old band was asked to participate in a documentary chronicling the rise and fall of the now infamous rocker haunt.
"The truth is, I don't have any fond memories playing there," she recalls. LOADED GUN and YSEULT swapped horror stories of dodging roaches and pushing aside the bridge and tunnel kids to actually catch a show at the fallen hotspot.
"I remember playing at CBGB's with WHITE ZOMBIE and practically begging for some water when I was onstage. They were so mean to us. For me, CBGB's is the club that wouldn't even give us a cup of water."
The bassist agrees with LOADED GUN that CBGB's rich rock 'n' roll résumé should be revered. "I respect CBGB's history and its early days. Even though we weren't treated well there, it should be a landmark. It shouldn't be torn down and turned into a NYU (NEW YORK UNIVERSITY) dormitory. That would just be criminal."
SOME GHOULS Even though YSEULT is sorta starting from scratch with ROCK CITY MORGUE, her past with WHITE ZOMBIE helped a bit with the band's self-released EP "SOME GHOULS."
In fact, former RAMONES mastermind, DANIEL REY, produced the group's first set of tracks and is currently hashing out the band's debut album, "DEAD MAN'S SONG," scheduled for an AUG. 30 release in the states.
"I've worked with some great people over the years," the bassist says. "I do have an advantage coming from another band. DANIEL REY produced an EP for WHITE ZOMBIE, before we were signed to GEFFEN."
And former WHITE ZOMBIE guitarist, J. YUENGER, is also a co-producer on ROCK CITY MORGUE's upcoming NOCTURNAL RECORDS release.
"A few of the tracks have leaked, and the buzz has been good so far," YSEULT says of the new material.
Based on what we've heard, LOADED GUN is positive that the new CD will have hardcore heathens from EAST VILLAGE to EAST HILL rolling in their graves with joy.
Visit www.ROCKCITYMORGUE.com for the dirt.
