dub's Eye View...
...a portrayal of the history of the band
Although this is not an official site of ekoostik hookah, I will attempt to portray an accurate representation of the band's history since their inception - sometime around April of 1991. My beginning attachment to this scene started with Dave Katz, pre-hookah. He was in Local Color at the time, when he eventually had an incling to go his own way and do his own thing. As their keyboardist, an around town local cover band, Dave decided it was time to move on, so he up and walked away. It was with good partings with the guys in the band, but Dave was into doing his own original music. One Wednesday night he went to the Southberg. The 'Berg, as we like to call it, was a small hole in the wall, actually underground. It wasn't really designed with live music in mind, but more of a social watering hole. It was dark and lurking with the stench of dried, stale beer. Sometimes it was so bad that my feet stuck to the ground. This is where he ran into a character by the name of John Mullins. It was on open mic night somewhere around the end of 1990. Dave and John ended up playing a few tunes together, as well as a few on their own. Within a few weeks they formulated a pattern of playing acoustic individually, mixed with a period of time where they could play together. Things were starting to roll. They met with a drummer by the name of Steve Frye and Wednesday nights at our local watering hole started to become a regular happening. Cliff and Steve were in Supplication, a Dead cover band. They were starting to frequent the 'Berg on a more regular basis. This was something right off the bat that was impressive. The amount of original material that had already been born was simply amazing. As the band grew tighter, it was time for the Supplication combo to make a decision, cover or original. They hadn't committed to the future Schwa, nor had they left their Dead roots.
So there they were, all five of them, without a name. What would they call themselves? I remember sitting over at Dave, Sharon and Danni's house at the time when Dave and Steve Frye walked in and said, "We've got a name, wanna hear it?" Surely it was going to be something out of this world, if only to be representative of what they were. They said, "ekoostik hookah". I said, "acoustic hookah". They said, "no, the phonetic spelling of acoustic, meaning sound as it is heard, hookah meaning a communal gathering." So there it was. The entity was official, the most mispronounced, misspelled name ever. It must have been July or August of '91 around this point. By the beginning of 1992, the boys were looking for a bit of organization, as they had booked gigs through a few hookups and spot gigs from friends. The weekly Wednesday show at the 'Berg started to escalate in crowd capacity. It grew thick with smoke and heat and the boys just downright jamming as much as they could. They were looking for a little exposure, a way to get their name out to the masses. A friend by the name of Harlan Penn took the gamble and financially allowed them to release their first cassette, Under Full Sail. Only 500 copies were made before it was buried in the dust, only to be revived and remastered on CD a few years later. About this time a percussionist by the name of Don Safrenek caught onto the scene. He had been playing with a Cleveland-based band by the name of Oroboros. The specifics I'm not quite sure of, but he also had connections from former bands for gigs outside of Cowtown. The boys started gigging in not only Columbus, but all the major cities and college towns they could. They gigged a few out of staters when it was possible just for kicks. They picked up a roadie by the name of Big Bill Mershon to help Steve do the hauling. Don booked the months destinations and they scurried for transportation. As their crowd grew bigger in other various parts of the state and their local crowds grew twice fold, it was time to move on. The 'Berg treated them well, but it was just too small. So on my birthday in the winter of '93 they played what was thought to be their last Southberg gig.
There was a place up High Street by the name of Not Al's Rockers. It was a long shaped bar with the stage facing the bar, against it's opposite wall, right in the middle of the bar long ways. It held about 600 with the patio open and it got crowded in there rather quickly. It was made of good use until November of '93. During their stint at Rockers, an unforeseen incident occurred. In mid-August, drummer Steve Frye decided to call it quits for only reasons only he could tell. In doing so, he knew of a perfect person for the job. Through a mutual friend of theirs, Tracy Divelbiss - the sound engineer at the time, Steve introduced Eric Lanese. While Eric and Steve are different style drummers, the addition of Eric enhanced an already sweet sound. The band dropped Old John Henry and All By Myself from their song repertoire, but they gained what proved to be an essential piece of their puzzle. A quick witted, bright and always hilarious character who can keep a beat with the accuracy of his own heart. It was at the Dell in Columbus, a three set show containing an acoustic set, that got Eric primed. His exuberant personality immediately wore off on the the rest of them and so here that path still unfolds yet today.
A few weeks later the band would be off on their first Colorado run through the thick of the snow, only to return to one of their few remaining Rockers shows. The evening they returned, and having to play the next night, they woke up to find that the van had been broken into and all of their instruments were stolen. Talk about a loss. Dave's keyboard, the acoustic guitar and John's guitar were the only instruments not taken. John had his with him, as for the rest, it's still not known what happened. They overcame this dilemma, rented guitars, made money, and bought new ones to call their own.
As the boys crowd grew stronger, the venue size did too. So in the late fall of 1993 and through to the winter of '94, right in between their first and second Colorado run of shows, they stepped into the Newport Music Hall, capacity of 1,700. They had played there a few times prior with a few other bands, but not on a regular basis. This run of weekly shows was a stellar period for the band. They were starting to get some recognition, and the crowd was yet still thickening. They had been through a few management changes here and there throughout this period. Each person took them a little further than they had been before, until they ran into a man by the name of Jeff Spencer - Heffe, to which he is referred. He had the mainframe of Acoustic Productions Incorporated under wrath until mid-2005. Right after their last weekly gig at the Newport in mid-February of 1994, the band started on another Colorado excursion. When they returned they continued their weekly gigs at a place in the short north of Columbus called Chelsie's. This lasted a few months until the heavier touring took place and the Wednesday weekly escapade became a thing of the past. The booking and tour schedule started to cover a lot more ground, a lot more times a year. Michigan and Kentucky started to give them some attention, as well as a few other Midwest states. The east coast and eventually the south were getting covered. It was also at this time that a few more instances occurred where the puzzle changed shape for yet one more time. Percussionist, Don Safrenek came to the conclusion that the road he was on was not the road that he must follow, and announced his departure from the band. It was sad to see a percussion enhancement leave the slate, but each must follow their own dream.
A few months later, in the late spring, early summer of 1994 the idea got stuck in someone's head to throw their own festival. And like the lyrics to the song itself, Hookahville is a place of no hassles or bad attitudes. It started out on Dave and Heffe's personal land and eventually, more quickly than not, grew to mass proportions. Thousands of hookahheads embraced their grace, as the boys would take the stage for a weekend endeavor of their own. It was so much fun that they decided to have two of them, one in the spring and one in the fall. To this day that tradition continues and folks from all around the country unite on common ground with one common interest - hookah and all their hookah friends. The transition of the bi-annual festival has grown just like they have, moving to bigger venues and attracting a lot more walks of life. Right before the fall Hookahville, late in the summer of '94, the band released their second studio release, dubbabuddah, at the end of the first week of August with a party at the Newport. By the turn of the year, the band already had aspirations to attempt a live recording. They taped a run of shows at the beginning of the year, only to release it on a double CD set. By this time the band was on a roll. They had released three CDs on their own label and were gaining momentum. They had established a bi-annual party that had grown into proportions of thousands strong. It was them seeing the light at the end of the tunnel to the big leagues.
The irony of it all, is that all this time the band was having an internal struggle with the out of control behavior of front man Mullins. They tried to help and asked him repeatedly to get help. To do what was needed so that they could function properly as a band. It was tearing them apart and eventually would have destroyed any hopes of all of the members to stay together as a whole. Attempt after failed attempt, something had to be done. It was the bands hardest decision they had yet faced. They were about ready to release into stardom and they couldn't go onstage without a gloom casting over their heads. Like Dave says in Utopia, "you've got to do what makes you happy." They had to confront John. He actually proved to them on a southward swing in the fall of '96 that it just wasn't working and it was time to part ways. The band then dismissed the lead singer and rhythm guitarist.
Despite the criticism of their loyal fans and following, which to this day they still get flogged and ridiculed for outside their circle, it was their only means of survival. The guys had to make a decision, a tough one at that.
They needed another front man, someone available that was not only lyrically talented, but played rhythm guitar. They needed someone they could live with on the road and get along with for years to come. According to Dave, there was only one legitimate choice. That was someone that came out of the same mold. A Wednesday night open mic'er and Local Color product by the name of Ed McGee. The true test of whether or not the band could overcome the single most hugest step of their careers was about to be determined. Their crowds dropped in half and a lot of people had abandoned ship. Others were upset and frustrated. The amount of core friends and believers was reset back a few years, but they would end up being the ones to help them get back on their feet and let their magic twirl around them until the dazzle was back in the beat. It took them a short bit of time to reformat the pieces of the puzzle once more, and regain the tightness they once had. This didn't take too long before there was a sense of new freshness in the air. There were new songs, a new sound, and a new direction - one that had the weight to carry on with the big boys. They released their third studio release, and first release with frontman, McGee. Where the Fields Grow Green debuted in 1998, with the release of two more to come - a "bootleg" release of the Spring 98 Hookahville, and shortly after Sharp in the Flats - another double-live release recorded at the Odeon in the Flats on the lakefront in Cleveland. They have since come across a few mile markers. They have touched down on the west coast a number of times and graced the stage with many other top notch performers. Their Hookahville festivals have grown to enormous proportions. The band's enthusiasm and passion for what they do shows in their performances, as well as their personal lives. Each and every time they play, they seem to get better and better. Their intimacy and friendliness toward the people that enjoy their work is effervescent with the love that they bring to the stage.
In the winter of 2001 - 2002 the band released another studio album, Seahorse. It was around this time that again, the seeds of change were being planted. Nobody could admit it to themselves because unless you were really paying attention, you would have never noticed. The Schwa had picked up a percussionist by the name of Johnny Polansky - aka Starrcatt. The band would release yet another studio album during this periond - Ohio Grown. It's probably their best sounding recording to date. Polansky would stay with the band for only a few years until his desire to reach the top was too tired of being muffled by the bigger sounds of his claim to grotesque mismanagement. Some things would never change, so he felt he needed to follow his desire to build a vehicle that would help get him where he wanted to be - at the top. He left hookah to found his own band. It wasn't long after that when McGee decided to make a choice between hookah and his newest endeavor. He opted for the latter and on the eve of the New Year, ringing in 2006, McGee parted farewell at the PromoWest Pavilion in Columbus.
Irony has a way of paying the price, especially in times of unexpectedness. With McGee's spot on the stage unfilled, the band decided to go on hiatus. They obviously needed some time to sort things out and figure out what they were going to do. It was during this time that Polansky got his wish just a little too late. Hookah decided to downsize, ridding of their office, Frontier Ranch, and soon following, their infrastructure. It was time to clean house and rebuild for bigger and better things to come. The only soul left on the payroll was their sound engineer, Dan "the Man" Mesnard. They have since added Buddy, their lighting technician. They have also rehired on Corinne as their merchandise manager.
So now the band has to regroup and make some decisions about their future and how they were going to put our social environment back on the map. They booked a three night run of shows in Negril, Jamaica as their returning shows. They would take place in April of 2006. And who would be filling McGee's shoes? The answer to that would be their only obvious choice. John "the Muffinman" Mullins. Why not put back together what was once badly bent, but so good, and make it something great. It was so good to finally see John back where he has always belonged. I never knew how much I was missing him until he re-entered and stamped the hookah sound back on my forehead.
It was around November of 2006 when the band embarked on another endeavor, an Atlanta run at Tree Sound Studios. Noodles Romanoff offered them a deal to re-record their original cassette, Under Full Sail in one of the nations top studios. They invited 150 of their friends for a few nights of live recordings, and doubled the release with a studio and live disc, all in one package. Renaming it, rightly so - Under Full Sail: It All Comes Together.
In the Fall of 2009, bass player and founding member of the Schwa, Cliff Starbuck, decided to part ways for lefter coasts, leaving a void in the band's original line-up. The band decided to take a small hiatus at the beginning of 2010 while they recruited a new bass player, hit multiple practice sessions, and regroup to go back out on the road. It was decided after open auditions, that they would choose someone that completely fits their style of music, and was easy to mold into the Schwa. They chose Recipe and Greenlief bassist, Philip Risko. Since his inception, the band hasn't seemingly missed a beat. Their repetoire hasn't suffered, and his addition has been on the contrary - a pleasant surprise. Phil brings his own style of play, while rejuvenating the band with a new found energy not seen in a few years. This of course, is my opinion, but also an opinion expressed by many hardcore fans.
They continue on the festival circuit in the summertime and play to 1,000 plus seated venues in the wintertime. Their repertoire of songs has grown into the hundreds, with new songs, both cover and original, being released live on a monthly basis. They continue to grow and prosper on a regular basis. So, for many years to come, I hope the tradition continues. I wish them entire happiness and the best of luck in striving to do what they want - make music their own way.
sdtl~
dub
