Forming the band The Metrolites was just "something to do," said the band's leader, Scott Morschhauser. Oh, how things change in less than two years. The story of the Quad Cities best (if only) surf spy noir spaghetti-western lounge band is one of steadily increasing expectations and aspirations. What was once a geeky-cool novelty band has grown into a record, a record label, a "professional" sound and ethic, and the desire to do far more than sell a few CDs in the Quad Cities.

The band was formed in 2002 and has essentially become the house band at Copia in The District of Rock Island. The five-piece outfit has a rock base - guitarist Kathleen Gallagher, drummer Josh Duffee, and bassist Devin Kirby-Hansen - with Morschhauser playing digital percussion and theremin and Nervous Neal Smith contributing sax.

The result is a group that throws together just about every film-genre sound ever invented, from the spooky theremin warble of cheesy sci-fi to the spaghetti-Western sounds of Ennio Morricone. Mike King, the owner of Copia, said, "They're a great fit for our bar. ... I call it 'pulp noir.' ... If Quentin Tarantino was going to a soundtrack, this is the band he should use."

The Morricone scores from the 1960s - particularly those for director Sergio Leone - are probably the biggest influence on The Metrolites, Morschhauser said, with a tension, for example, between a fuzz guitar and a full orchestra.

That same dynamic is at work in The Metrolites, he said, "a cool tug-of-war" between the Gallagher's guitar and Morschhauser's digital vibraphone. He describes the music as a "film score ... for a nonexistent movie."

Despite that intellectual framework, the band was merely a fun diversion at first. But as the group started to draw bigger and bigger crowds at Copia, some ambition crept in.

"We'll just kind of do a local release" was the band's attitude at first, Morschhauser said. "A lot of people do high-end demos," and that's what The Metrolites were headed toward, as well.

"It kind of advanced with each step," he said of the project's growth. A local release became a search for a label became a desire to do it right but by themselves. "After doing this for 20-something years, I can do this big myself," Morschhauser said.

So he started the Go-Go Golem record label, even though its only planned release is the tentatively titled The Metrolites in Spy-Fi on October 12. "We'll have all the distribution I ever had," said Morschhauser, who recorded as a member of the Kabalas and also plays in Duffee's jazz orchestra. He said the CD will be available at Amazon.com and most online music retailers, as well as online music services such as iTunes and Napster. In addition, physical stores will be order the record, and the label is setting up consignment deals with local stores. The Metrolites in Spy-Fi will also be available at shows for $12.

But will the band be able to expand its reach beyond its local audience? Morschhauser understands the difference between what most local bands do in the studio and what qualifies as a "professional" recording - something a major label could release.

In Morschhauser's view, a live show has several benefits over recorded music. Most importantly, there's interaction and an energy between the performers and the crowd, and there's the visual component of a show, too. Those are things that can't be captured in a studio, he said. "You actually go in [to the recording process] with a deficit," he said. On record, "we've got to make up that 25 percent."

The band just finished 50 hours in the renovated Brass Sail recording studio in Rock Island, and Morschhauser said the recording space in The District is "like Catamount now," dropping the name of the high-end studio in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

The album's 18 tracks have a level of detail that most local bands don't have the time, money, or inclination to do, Morschhauser said. Most of the basic tracks were laid down in one or two takes, but many of the songs have layers of sound and multiple guitar parts, with Morschhauser adding all manner of unconventional instruments. Tying it all together is a series of variations on a theme that are both a tribute to film composer Jerry Goldsmith (who died in July) and connecting tissue for the record.

"It really is us live plus that 25 percent you lose" outside of live shows, Morschhauser said.

The bandleader is adamant that although The Metrolites in Spy-Fi will be a dense record that will reward repeat listenings, "we don't want it to be lush." The goal is to keep the edge on the music while balancing it with a rich, professional sound.

The Metrolites are pressing 1,000 CDs to start with and hope to be re-pressing the album within a year. With a second pressing, Morschhauser said, the band will start to generate money for its next project. "You really want to make it less of a hardship the next time around," he said. (When asked about the costs of recording The Metrolites in Spy-Fi, Morschhauser said, "Thank God for home equity.")

Part of the appeal of forming the Go-Go Golem label, Morschhauser said, is that if the album does well, the musicians will benefit more than if they were working for another label. Because more money comes back to the band, "constant reward for every single sale will give incentive to each and every musician," Morschhauser wrote in an e-mail.

But money seems a secondary consideration. What seems to drive Morschhauser with The Metrolites is the satisfaction of getting it right. "I want to like this when it's done," he said. So far, with the mix-down coming later this month, "I'm very happy with it."

For more information on The Metrolites, visit (http://www.metrolites.com). The band plays at Copia every other weekend, starting at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The next shows are August 6 and 7.

Support the River Cities' Reader

Get 12 Reader issues mailed monthly for $48/year.

Old School Subscription for Your Support

Get the printed Reader edition mailed to you (or anyone you want) first-class for 12 months for $48.
$24 goes to postage and handling, $24 goes to keeping the doors open!

Click this link to Old School Subscribe now.



Help Keep the Reader Alive and Free Since '93!

 

"We're the River Cities' Reader, and we've kept the Quad Cities' only independently owned newspaper alive and free since 1993.

So please help the Reader keep going with your one-time, monthly, or annual support. With your financial support the Reader can continue providing uncensored, non-scripted, and independent journalism alongside the Quad Cities' area's most comprehensive cultural coverage." - Todd McGreevy, Publisher