By CRAIG CUSTANCE
State News MS&U Writer

The Smiling Villians sat in McDonald’s moments before it was time to record a song for
the CD “Battle of the Bands, Volume 2” and they still didn’t have the words.

“We knew what we wanted to do with the song, but we just didn’t have the words yet,” said
Craig Huhn, the bassist for The Smiling Villians. “Our producer started to get upset
because we didn’t have it complete, but I’m really happy with the way it turned out in
the end.”

The disk is a compilation of local bands that won the Battle of the Bands concert at
Small Planet Food and Spirits, 220 M.A.C. Ave., in March. It consists of recordings from
local bands such as The End, The Smiling Villains, Voodoo Garden, Funktelligence,
Negligent Youth, The Fourth Seal and more.

Click on the CD cover to hear a RealAudio sound clip of The Fourth Seal’s “Greatest of
these” from the CD, or click here to hear it in AIFF format.
If you do not have the RealAudio Player you can get it at http://www.realaudio.com
 

“From start to finish this is really a good CD,” said Don Hoffman, guitarist for The
End, “It really shows the diversity the local scene has here.”

The highlight of the disk is arguably the track performed by The Fourth Seal.

The song, appropriately called “The Greatest of These,” builds slowly with a climaxing
introduction. As contradictory as a climaxing introduction may seem, it makes perfect
sense once the track is played. The only really weak section is when the band breaks it
down and Joe Anderson, on lead vocals, starts talking his way through the song. This weak
stretch of the song is quickly erased when the captivating Spanish guitar solo kicks in
near the end.

Another bright spot on the disk is the live recording by Funktelligence. This is the only
track on the disk recorded live and live is really the best way to hear this song.
Micheal Demps is something special on lead vocals. “Live” is worth listening to just to
hear if Demps ever takes a breath. Vocally driven, this track also is supported by Jordan
Lopez on keyboards. Lopez does a great job in developing and keeping the rhythm
throughout the song. The sound is comparable to old East Lansing favorite Fly Illusion.

Negligent Youth’s track takes the disk back to the late 1980s or early 1990s with their
punk-like sound. The song “Ordinary” could be on Ned’s Atomic Dustbin’s classic release
Godfodder.

“I’m really happy how our song came out,” Ben Graham, the drummer for Negligent Youth
said. “This disk gives us a chance to get radio time that maybe we wouldn’t normally
get.”

The CD continues with a solid song by Uncle Jerry. “Blanche Bidon,” is a pleasant
surprise. The intro is weak, but it develops into one of the best on the CD. The key to
the song is Justin Stoney on piano. Once Stoney kicks in, the song really is complete.
Drummer Kelly Rush carries the beat throughout the song, and the highlight is the
curveball the band throws near the end of the song. The piano switches to organ and the
song starts to chill out. It is a maneuver that isn’t expected, yet Uncle Jerry pulls it
off nicely.

This CD does a great job representing the wide range of musicians from the East Lansing
area. From the heavy sound of PINN, to the groove of Funktelligence — the disk exposes
East Lansing’s versatility.

“It’s a great way for local bands to spread out their sound,” Huhn said. “There is a wide
 range of musical styles and the best part is, all the sounds are pretty cool.”

The CD is on sale today at Where House Records, 515 E. Grand River Ave., and Tower
Records, 115 E. Grand River Ave.