M3 Rock Festival 2015 Preview: Part Three
M3 Rock Festival 2015 Preview: Part Three
April 27, 2015
With this year’s M3 Rock Festival drawing closer, Sleaze Roxx continues their coverage of the infamous groups gracing its stage. This year the festival takes place on May 1st and 2nd at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland — with tickets available for purchase at m3rock.webs.com — and rounding out Day Two of the festival will be Black ‘N Blue, Tyketto, Rhino Bucket, Killer Dwarfs and Bad Seed Rising.
Black ‘N Blue are no strangers to the M3 stage, having been part of it four years ago. Black ‘N Blue are one of many bands that benefited from a major label deal back in the mid ’80s but never got to that next level despite releasing four studio records consisting of their self-titled debut, Without You, Nasty Nasty and the Gene Simmons produced In Heat during that time period. The band disbanded in 1989 but have reformed several times over the years — with and without guitarist Tommy Thayer, who found success as the Spaceman in KISS. After releasing a multitude of live records and various compilation records in one form or another, Black ‘N Blue finally released another (long-awaited) studio album, Hell Yeah!, in 2011.
Tyketto are another band who never broke into the big time, even though they had the talent to do so. The band released two records, Don’t Come Easy and Strength In Numbers, in the early ’90s with former Waysted lead vocalist Danny Vaughn at the helm — with the debut being released on the major label Geffen Records. Vaughn was replaced by Steve Augeri for the studio album Shine before the band disbanded in 1996. Since 2004, Tyketto have reformed on a number of occasions with their original line-up and in 2012 released their comeback album Dig In Deep. The band is playing the M3 Rock Festival for the first time.
Rhino Bucket are another band playing this year’s edition of the M3 Rock Festival for the first time. The group have released a number of studio records including their 1990 self-titled debut in 1990 and the follow-up Get Used To It (featuring “Ride With Yourself”, which appeared in the Wayne’s World movie) before disbanding in 1996. The AC/DC influenced band (even recruiting former AC/DC drummer Simon Wright for a couple albums) reformed in 2001 and have released a number of albums since, including And Then It Got Ugly in 2006 and Who’s Got Mine? in 2011. The band recently released a live album entitled Sunrise on Sunset Blvd.: Live at Coconut Teaszer which captured the rockers performing back in 1990. Sleaze Roxx had the following to state about the live release, “Sunrise On Sunset Blvd. captures a hot up and coming band — at the time — playing good old fashioned hard rock dripping with tons of sleaze and attitude.”
Another first timer at the 2015 M3 Rock Festival are the Killer Dwarfs, who hail from Canada. Known for their outrageous humor and stage show, the Killer Dwarfs released two studio records, their self-titled debut in 1983 and Stand Tall in 1985, before getting picked up by a major label. Two more albums followed, Big Deal in 1998 and Dirty Weapons in 1990, both of which reached the Billboard charts. With the advent of grunge, the Killer Dwarfs eventually disbanded and ended up putting a fully recorded album on the shelf — one which would resurface twenty years later as Start @ One. Sleaze Roxx had the following to say about Start @ One, “Not only are the Killer Dwarfs finally releasing their ‘lost album’, but the original master tapes were digitally remixed and re-mastered to get the sound up to industry standards twenty years later. The end results are exactly what fans have been longing for — classic hooks with the inimitable singing of Russ “Dwarf” Graham.” The Killer Dwarfs are well known in Canadian circles as Sleaze Roxx noted in a concert review dating back to October 2013, “What is the best way to open a brand new rock concert hall in Toronto? Get the legendary and very entertaining Killer Dwarfs (who originate from Toronto) to headline and play their “reunion” show at the venue.”
The M3 Rock Festival has a couple of hometown favorites, including the young up and comers Bad Seed Rising, who are returning to the festival for the third year in a row Although the band’s members are apparently all under 18 years of age, the group is already poised to release its third EP entitled A Place Called Home. With a more modern sound than any of their festival counterparts, Bad Seed Rising will be banking on their home state advantage and their youthful energy to win over the ’80s metal fan base.
Stay tuned for part four of Sleaze Roxx’s M3 Rock Festival Preview.
Courtesy of www.sleazeroxx.com