Friday, May 11, 2007:
Have you ever felt like hanging around certain people, or doing a certain activity made you feel like a kid again? Or even just thinking about this certain thing put a little extra hop in your step? In a sense, this is how playing with Fetish Lane defines me these days. As some of you know, Fetish Lane has undergone a few gradual changes over the course of the last year. We've added the fiery fiddle styling of Darin Trass (I use this phrase because I know he will appreciate it when he reads it), and the multi-instrumental talents of Brian O'Connell.

Before he came on board, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to see Darin w/ his other ensembles the Snake-Oil Salesmen, and the Rabble Rousers. They were a great "old timey/bluegrass" group that played primarily out of the Ithaca area. Ken and I chatted on several occasions about how cool it would be to have Darin come play with Fetish Lane. I have always admired his playing, but did have reservations about him joining the band. How would he fit in? Many people don't realize that being in a band is like being married. You spend a significant amount of time together. You are working and entertaining alongside an equal. There are sums of money that needs to be decided what to do with. What songs would he play on? We would be starting over in a way, by having to teach him many of the songs that we have had as staples in our live sets for years. In a sense, we would be changing the comfortable arrangements we've developed to accommodate the extra melody and presence.

And in the end (to no ones surprise I might add), he was able to step right in, and not even miss a beat. Not only does he bring a good stiff upper lip (proven by his ability to handle my incessant hazing for his first two rookie months), Darin also brings good song-writing, tremendous musical ability, and yet another unique voice to the mix. I might add that Darin has become extremely adept at striking first with varied assaults and wise cracks.

To be completely honest, I have no idea where Brian came from, or how he actually ended up in this musical conglomerate. Brian O'Connell is a musical journeyman in the true sense of the word. He has been playing with one group or another for much longer than any of us can lay claim to. I do know at one point that Brian was our trusty but "moody" sound man. Eventually he took on the role of multi-instrumentalist and back-up vocalist.

Brian is a funny guy. He is one of the very few people on this Earth that can make me laugh hard enough that my stomach will actually ache. Personally, I think he suffers from multi-personality disorder. He can often be found changing mid sentence from the not so hip, seventies lounge lizard Tony Capricorn, to the evangelical Reverend O'Connell. If you are fortunate to catch him on these occasions, I encourage you to just let him go and enjoy the ride.

I have also come to know him as the "sensitive trucker". Brian often has a very eclectic sense of style when it comes to clothing. He can often be seen wearing varying combinations of polyester pants, and outdated button down shirts (usually topped with a bright colored dew-rag of some sort). But behind his scruffy and disheveled exterior lies one of the most big-hearted and naturally gifted musicians I have ever met. Brian is one of those rare people who could pick up any given object, and make recognizable music flow from it. In the past few months, I've seen Brian literally bring car-loads of different musical instruments to practice and gigs. At one point, we always jokingly told Izzy that we wanted to rename the band "Izzy, and His Amazing Bag of Shit" because of the massive amounts of stuff Izzy had a tendency to haul around. Well, Iz has nothing on Brian, and I predict people will probably become more enamored with what Brian pulls out next, rather than the actual music played (just kidding Brian)!!!

Lately, playing with the boys has been nothing short of an adventure. We just recently had our first real road trip that included both Brian and Darin (not to mention super fans Curt & Nikki also in tow). We played at the Acorn Outing in the beautiful hills of Cherry Flats, Pennsylvania. Our mornings on this trip always started with laughter, and our evenings never failed to end with the same. It seems like all we did that weekend was laugh and carry on. And on our way home, riding shot gun w/ Ken...as I began to drift off into dream land... I thought to myself...maybe the music is actually secondary in the greater scheme of things? Eventually, I'll forget the songs that we played in our three sets that weekend, and I'll probably even forget the names of some of the people I was fortunate enough to meet...but I am positive that I will never forget hanging out with the guys under the canopy we liked to call the "not-so-easy-up!!!" I will never forget Darin's soup tirade, or Reverend O'Connell's Sunday morning sermon. Sometimes being a Fetish Laner is truly an adventure!!!

Fetish Lane is an American Roots Music Band. Members include Ken Held, Israel Lorimer, Ed Gliha, John Edick, Darrin Trass and Brian O'Connell.

Photography featured on this website was done in large part by friends, fans and family of the band including, but not limited to the following folks: Nikki Bisaha, Sarah Lewis, Aliscia Gaucher, Stacie Edick, Noelle Dasilva, and Johann Cash.

Website design and construction by: Thirsty Fish Graphic Design and Fetish Lane.