I recently received an email from Ghost And The Big Sky guitarist, Patrick Bitbol, warning me about a CD package that he was mailing to me at The Aquarian offices. Unfortunately, I haven’t been up to the offices in a while, but I wanted to give Patrick’s band a listen. I thought that Ghost And The Big Sky was pretty good! They had this psychedelic rock feel to them, yet the music still felt bad ass. This was evident in songs like “Like A Bullet” and “Stone Cold” with its classic rock feel, but dirty guitar riffs and bad ass vocal melodies. The songs actually leave you wanting to hear more.
Ghost And The Big Sky is a unique story about a band that was put together by a near miss, or in other words, a near death. A few years back, guitarist and songwriter Patrick Bitbol was in a really bad motorcycle accident that almost cost him his life. Patrick was hit head-on by a van, and according to the police report, his body was thrown about 70 feet from the point of impact. Because of this, Patrick has to now live with a large titanium plate on the left side of his skull. His brain even took weeks to start functioning properly again. This is an unbelievable story. The songs off of their self-titled CD began while Patrick spent two months in the brain trauma ward because supposedly, strumming his acoustic helped in his recovery. Music became his healer as he began writing riffs that would turn into songs by Ghost And The Big Sky. Singer and longtime friend Paul Gerdts would pay Patrick a visit in the hospital and before you knew it, they were writing songs together. They would later be joined by drummer Dan Scardino to complete the line-up of Ghost And The Big Sky.
The boys are currently out promoting their self-titled CD and from the crowd responses it seems Ghost And The Big Sky has found the right ingredient to rock! You need to hear these guys! Especially, if you’re a fan of The Allman Brothers, Johnny Cash, and Lenny Kravitz, you’ll love Ghost And The Big Sky. Check them out for yourself or find out where they’re playing next at myspace.com/ghostandthebigsky.
North Jersey Notes Updates
Dayna Jade, singer from The Jersey Syndicate, has recently jumped ship and left the band, which I found rather odd because I met Dayna last month when my band Mean Venus opened for Sebastian Bach over at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, NJ. The Jersey Syndicate, who was also on the bill, seemed pretty cohesive making the news quite a surprise to me. Dayna stated that she left The Jersey Syndicate to pursue and focus on her new project Pain Of Days. You can hear two brand new songs from Pain Of Days with Dayna Jade singing, “Fear” and “If U Cum Closer,” at myspace.com/painofdays. Dayna is also currently working on a duet and music video with the self-proclaimed Demon Christ himself, Dave Incognito from Dying Eyes Of Sloth. For more info on Dayna Jade and her projects, log onto daynajade.com.
Speaking of new projects, I just heard that former Hello Eden singer, Sal Marrano, has found himself a new band. The name of the band is called Thank You Scientist, and they’re a band that has been reconstructed with Sal singing. Because they’re so new, there’s no new music posted on their MySpace page, but you can do a Facebook search for them to find out some more info.
And finally, a couple of weeks ago, my lady friend and I went down to the Black Water Rising CD release party at Dingbatz in Clifton, NJ, where Black Water Rising and Piston Driven tore the roof off a packed Dingbatz. More importantly, I got my first glimpse of Moth Eater live, which featured former Dirty Rig bassist Steve “Buckshot” Seabury. I got to chat with Buckshot after Moth Eater’s eye-opening set, and he told me that publishing giant Simon and Schuster recently picked up his book, Mosh Potatoes. The book is being labeled the first ever heavy metal cookbook, which features recipes, photos, and anecdotes from more than 100 bands. According to Buckshot, the book is “sure to set your taste buds on fire!” Look for Mosh Potatoes to hit book shelves this October.
That’s all for now! If your band is from North Jersey, and you want some exposure, send your press kits to Arts Weekly, c/o Tim Louie P.O. Box 1140 Little Falls, NJ 07424. No cover bands, please! Also, if you haven’t checked out my podcast yet, do it now at northjerseynotes.mypodcast.com!
Just remember….We’re all in the same boat, so every little bit of exposure counts!
NJN Concert Calendar
3/24—Steve Brown—The Copper Bottom, Florida, NY
3/26—Fantazma—Sussex Tech, Sparta, NJ
3/27—Rahway—Crocodile Rock, Allentown, PA
3/27—Ray West’s APW—Local 269 Club, NYC
3/28—Filter Effect—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
3/30—Steve Brown—The Fireside, Denville, NJ
3/31—Steve Brown—The Grasshopper Also, Carlstadt, NJ
4/1—Steve Brown—The Firehouse Eatery and Pub, Rahway, NJ
4/2—Pain of Days—Ace of Clubs, NYC
4/2—Steve Brown—Arirang Japanese Steakhouse, Mountainside, NJ
4/3—Trixter (make-up date)—Mexicali Live, Teaneck, NJ
4/9—Uncle Freak—The Loop Lounge, Passaic Park, NJ
4/9—Trixter/L.A. Guns—The Crazy Donkey, Farmingdale, NY
4/10—Our Black Friday—The Cup Complex, Linden, NJ
4/10—Pain of Days (Rock N Roll for Nick Benefit)—Tiki Stadium, Keansburg, NJ
4/11—Ender/Fantazma—Caldwell College, Caldwell, NJ
4/16—Ghost and the Big Sky—Shortways Barn, Hawthorne, NJ
4/17—Our Black Friday—Big John’s Pub, Newfoundland, NJ
4/17—Ender—24 Club, Princeton, NJ
