Read first, then visit this site:
Just maybe we will see an unamed from the east coast try this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c911vw9_kwA&mode=related&search=italian%20miss%20alternative%202007%20cassero%20bologna%20mucca%20pazza

There are two kinds of people in this world: Those who branded themselves "band nerds" in high school, thus fulfilling the general population's need for booming musical spectacles between football plays, and those who didn't.




Sean Williams
Few people in this world can pull off "punk rock" and "band nerd" at the same time. Chicago locals Mucca Pazza (Italian for "crazy cow") pull it off nicely.

And then there's Mucca Pazza: Italian for "crazy cow," Indie Rock for "astounding circus punk marching band." (Mark this name down on your must-see music list, folks; they're exploding faster than marshmallow Peeps in the microwave.)

On a cloudless Saturday afternoon not long ago, the band's tight, jovial hurrah of trombone-and-drum vigor resonated through Chicago's Millennium Park – a rising ruckus just past the hordes of tourists gawking at Mayor Richard M. Daley's Bean.

Such a great whoop of calculated madness, it was hard to miss. Few people did, including me. After all, how often do you get to hear symphonic rock crescendos that cross genres between band camp and latter-day CBGB? Nay, how often do you get to see it?

Rounding the corner, we saw it – or rather, we saw them: a "marching band" flailing like the forces behind Arcade Fire's onstage energy, pumped to the point of imploding. Decked out in resale Ragstock band costumes and one-of-a-kind, decorated hats (are those megaphones I see atop a few guitarists' hats?), this 30-person outfit looked like they might as well have been filming a Wes Anderson flick.

"It's different," percussionist Paul Brannon says, explaining how he introduces newbies to this professionally eclectic orchestra. "Even if you're just telling someone about it, it doesn't come across."

That's because, frankly, you need to see it to hear it, he says. Which presents the band's latest creative endeavor – to package Mucca Pazza's chaotically in-sync movement and choreography (directed by dance instructor and movement expert Asimina Chremos) into a 30-minute EP for the very first time since their inception in 2004 and then to take it on the road.

Let's see, one bus, 30 different work schedules, several weeks and one group of people who love each other like a family … could be a love/hate relationship for anyone who isn't a member of this band. Mucca Pazza's mini tour kicks off shortly after their EP release on Nov. 11; it will be their first tour ever.

"We would love to get on the road in some fashion," says Brannon, who was the lead drummer in his marching band at Kearney High School in Missouri. "It reminds me of my high school marching band days … just getting on a bus and everybody acting like little kids."

In the meantime, you've probably already seen Mucca Pazza if you watched Conan O'Brien's Chicago stint, went to Lollapalooza (day three) or strolled past the Chicago River (they've actually played in boats on the river!). Mucca Pazza was the unmistakable gang of scamps stomping on stage in chaotic unison during Conan's closing credits on his last day in Chicago. Trust me, you'll know it when you see it.

Mucca Pazza probably drew 200 people in Millennium Park, charming unsuspecting passers-by like pied pipers to a basket cobra. This wasn't some nerdy halftime show of high school geeks (although Brannon says getting nerdy about music is one of the band's many foundations); this was an "astounding circus punk marching band."

"We've experimented with nerdy being OK, as a band," trombonist Elanor Leskiw says. And nerdy is very much accepted here, that is, as long as you have the skills to back up the brand. In that vein, this group of Redmoon Theater actors, performers and All-American Anti-War Marching Band musicians are quite astounding indeed.

"It was great that all these people could play really well, that they could back up the performance part with some real talent," Brannon says.

Mucca Pazza was the brainchild, in part, of Mark Messing, band director and sousaphone, melodica and alto sax player. It started out as an ongoing idea to mix an array of powerful instruments into a band and create a performance throw-back to marching band culture. They asked a few friends to meet up for practice in Chicago industrial district, and more people kept showing up and "trying out" after that.

"The idea was that it would be crazy if there were a band with a whole bunch of trombones and drums and accordions," Leskiw says. Leskiw has been a part of it since the beginning; Brannon came later via a recommendation by his girlfriend, who plays accordion for the group.

Like the band's "mad cow" name, it started with somebody mentioning the concept, everybody laughing, and then somebody else saying, "Wait, that's a good idea." Mucca Pazza started catching on a few months after its informal inception when they accepted a residency at Chicago club the Hideout.

They eventually melded into more of a street act that accepted gigs on the Chicago River instead of confining themselves to a stage. When a guy named Captain Chicago recommended this fanatical bunch of punk marchers to Conan this spring, Mucca Pazza made its national debut. The response has only been positive since then.

"It's been huge," Leskiw says, "(especially) after playing at the Hideout, where we had about as many people (in the audience) as we had in the band. For most of what we do, it's just been word of mouth; that's the best way for a group to grow."

Grow they shall. A full-length album is due out sometime next year and more mini-tours are in the wings for 2007. Expect to see them at a city park or river once the snow melts. You won't know what hit you. Just ask any of the mesmerized witnesses of Mucca Pazza's shenanigans in Millennium Park. As they watched the rainbow of marching rockers, they couldn't help but stare and clap along.

"There is an outcast element," Brannon says. "There's also a lot of inclusion. People feel like it's something they want to be a part of."

Mucca Pazza is: Loto Ball, trumpet; Larry Beers, percussion; Paul Brannon, percussion; Shaye Cohn, accordion; Benjamin Cole, trumpet; Max Crawford, trumpet; Winston Damon, trombone; Andy Deitrich, percussion; Nick Dempsey, tenor sax/clarinet; Tony DiMartino, percussion; Greg Hirte, violin; Tom Howe, trombone; Sam Johnson, trumpet; Gary Kalar, percussion/mandolin; Rick Kubes, percussion; Ronnie Kuller, accordion; George Lawler, percussion; Elanor Leskiw, trombone; Ronnie Malley, percussion; Mark Messing, sousaphone/melodica/alto sax; Eve Monzingo, alto sax/clarinet; Brent Roman, percussion; Dave Smith, bari sax; Dan Stark, trombone; Noah Tabakin, bari sax; Jeff Thomas, guitar; Sharon Lanza, cheerleader; Lori Myers, cheerleader; Meghan Strell, cheerleader; Lindsey Whiting, cheerleader.

What did you do in the Corps? drum

What years were you a Corps member? 1960-1969

My reply is: YIKES!

But, that could very well happen in the current drum corps world!

Life is strange.

What did you do in the Corps? drummer

What years were you a Corps member? 1958-1963

I noticed in John's article that the band has an acordian player. I can see a DCI corps doing a tribute to Lawrence Welk with 20 marching accordians.

In reading John's posting, I do think that something like this already exists. It's called the Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band. They bill themselves as the World's Largest Rock and Roll Band. They also refer to themselves as a scatter band as they morph into their formations (sort of like DCI). They have a dance group (like DCI)that they call "Dollies."

They've been suspended by the University a numerous times in the past forty years. One of their tamer escapades was a halftime show at a Notre Dame game entitled "These Irish, Why Must They Fight?" You can read about more of their suspensions at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanford_Band

They were suspended in 2006 and have been reinstated for the 2007 season but they aren't traveling. It's too bad they weren't in LA last week when Stanford beat USC. One of their memorable performances of the early 90s occured at a USC-Stanford game during the OJ trial. One of the band members drove a White Ford Bronco around the track. (For those of you who are too young or don't follow football--OJ was a big star for USC and prior to the trial was identifiied as one of their successful alumni.)

What did you do in the Corps? Baritone

What years were you a Corps member? 1959-66 (Cadets 59-61 Imperials 62-66)

The phrase "calculated madness", (used by John T)
seems to be very appropriate! That seems to describe the current trends in DCI shows!

What did you do in the Corps? drummer

What years were you a Corps member? 1958-1963

Viewed the clip. I felt like I was watching the Bridgemen. It works for me. I want a megaphone hat!

What did you do in the Corps? Snare

What years were you a Corps member? '70s