(Olympia, 12/27/07) The genius of 70’s punk acts was not their musical talent, but rather it was their ability to construct short and simple songs with authority and force. The short life of punk was emulated by countless bands who wanted to combine musical muscle with the rebellious spirit of the genre. One such band is the Olympia, WA power trio, Failing Winter. While the threesome of Jamie McPheeters (guitar/vox), Chad Maurer (bass/vox) and David “Tex” Venegas (drums) also list classic rockers Zep and Rush as influences, their core sound is closer to the Clash on crack and coffee.

Formed in 2002, the band was originally Jamie and Chad’s concept, “From what I can remember, Chad and I met around 1999 or 2000. My last band had just died. I was looking for something else to start or join but nothing seemed to work out” explained McPheeters. “It’s hard to find people with similar musical ideals that you can stand for long periods of time.” After posting a message on a local music side, Jamie found a kindred spirit in Chad. However, finding a drummer who fir in was a long process.

“For the longest time Chad and I jammed with tons of drummers. Many of them mysteriously disappeared after a couple of sessions. Others were just not “it”. Finally, Tex was added to the roster and they never looked back.

The trio entered the studio to record their debut, Taxidermy. The disc was recorded meticulously in stages, “It was very metronomic with a jittery ahead of the beat feel. It was our first real all out “album” experience,” said McPheeters. “We recorded it multi track style where everything is recorded separately. It’s weird not playing with all those little cues and nuances that you get when you actually interact musically with someone in the moment. It can make things too sterile at times.”

Like most guitarist in a trio, McPheeters relies less on chords and more on catchy licks which is most likely the Zeppelin connection. Maurer’s bass playing does much more than drive the rhythm; it also acts as a lead instrument, hence the Geddy Lee correlation. Throughout all the band’s 3 minute songs, there are intricate and melodic change-ups as well as inventive and complex chord progressions. In other words, this aint your parents punk.

As a live act, the band rocks hard and tight, “We really strive to be as tight as possible although that can vary. I have no desire to weave and explore a magical, musical tapestry on stage,” said McPheeters. “I have a long history being a punk rock fan. Songs over three and half minutes long scare me. Anything past that requires drugs.”

Failing Winter’s upcoming release, This is Not an Album, captures the sound of a live show because it was recorded that way, “It was certainly easier to feed off each other’s energy. Music wise, we have gelled more as a band and also become better musicians since the recording of Taxidermy two or three years ago,” says McPheeters. “The overall sound is much more cohesive in my opinion.”

Man of the Year:

- By Tony Engelhart for The Stonewailer

Tony Engelhart is a music journalist based in Seattle. He has been doing this professionally for seven years and his articles have appeared in Seattle Sound, Seattle’s Blues to Do, Crud in the UK, Glide in Boston, Hybrid in Denver and he is a staff writer for the Tacoma-based arts and entertainment paper, the Weekly Volcano.