Local band Acousticult plays for fun, not money
By Cassandra Pratt
Though bands are often portrayed as glamorous, IVCC students Jim Chamberlain, Matt McConnville, and Lenn Trujillo, along with Norm Lemrise and Gil Hernandez have experienced what playing is really like.
Dedication is a vital part of their band’s accomplishments.
“We’re just five guys that aim for perfection, or as close as we can get,” said Trujillo, the lead vocalist of The Acousticults.
Lemrise said, “While most people are out, we can be found in the studio, usually behind locked doors, from 10:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. It”s just a way to vent and have fun after a hard week.”
Though they’re working hard to perfect their acoustic versions of modern and classical rock, their talent has not yet brought them fame.
In Trujillo’s words, “We don’t make ‘top coin,’ but we’re moving up.”They agree that set backs like that are difficult sometimes to deal with. McConnville said, “We just learned not to take everything so seriously.”
Although they have every excuse to give up, the group has continued and grown since its birth in 1998. “It was pretty much me and Norm,” McConnville reminisces. “We just met in my garage and tried to see who could play songs better. After a while we started to learn how to play songs completely. Jim came along and he tried to get in the contest with us. Then Lenn stopped by my house one night. We asked if he would sing and he was like, ‘okay.’”
While they started out just messing around, they now have done about 20 gigs around the area.
“We just have fun,” said Lemrise. “We don’t care about the money and we make a little noise while we do it.”
“I think we have more fun than we should. I do not know how much fun other bands have, but we have a good time,” Lemrise continued.
Another reason they enjoy what they do, despite the hard times, was explained by Trujillo. “It’s just the feeling you get when you are up there and you are totally in control of the whole building. It’s awesome.”
“Would it be good to be famous?” Lemrise asks. “Yeah, I think everyone would like to be.” Although the group has shared many enjoyable times, it seems that all good things come to an end sooner or later. In this case, it is sooner rather than later. The group does not see how they can remain together when McConnville leaves the area this August.
But they are still gearing up for a big summer, playing at the Taste of the Illinois Valley, among other places.
They are also booked at Skoog’s Pub in Utica on Feb. 24 and Machelle’s Backstreet March 3.
Lemrise recommends, “If you want to know what it is like to be in a band, go to your attic or closet, take out that dusty old guitar with all your clothes on it, shine it up, get with some friends and start playing.”