Temple of Bon Matin

 V
Location:
US
Type:
Artist / Band / Musician
Genre:
Experimental / Folk / Psychedelic
Site(s):
Label:
Ruby Red Editora / Spirit of Orr /Meudiademorte de
Type:
Indie
Temple

of Bon Matin - A Band Biography



Temple of Bon Matin was begun around 1991 by drummer/singer Ed Wilcox and keyboardist

John Mulvaney, after the collapse of Wilcox' first band The Tomahawk Kids (named

in tribute to his hero, the sensational Alex Harvey - although, being 1990,

they sounded more like Guadacanal Diary). Hoping to build a vehicle to contain

their diverse loves of psychadelia, swing, punk and free jazz, and a welcoming

opportunity for guest musicians to contribute anything from a single performance

to staying a decade. Temple of Bon Matin began playing a Victor Borge, David

Allen, Canterbury colored mix of originals and swing covers at beatnik coffee

houses, hardcore punk clubs and streetcorners in the Philadelphia area.



With John Mulvaney taking the first of several Syd Barrett like hiatus' from

the band, Ed Wilcox continued with thunderous bassist Mark Lux and a string

of eccentric, Beefheart influenced guitarists before glam metal genius Trevor

Dixon answered the call. This group, with other musicians ( including Mulvaney

and Cecil Taylor's saxophonist Elliot Levin) coming and going and coming back

again, lasted almost 2 years, playing 5 or 6 shows a month of deafening, Hawkwind

like, space metal in Philadelphia, New York and New Jersey, and attracting the

attention of the Siltbreeze label, for whom they recorded "Thunder, Feedback

and Confusion" in 1993.



Tension built within the band, and with Siltbreeze, as the need to record a

followup album and tour began. Wilcox and Dixon determined not to make another

record that sounded like a record collector's record collection. They had an

unironic, unhip, unabashed love of covering The Scorpions and Van Halen, and

wanted to take the band into a glammed out, looks like Hanoi Rocks/ sounds like

P.I.L. + turntables direction, to the distaste of Lux and Siltbreeze who wanted

to go deeper into a Black Sabbath / Guru Guru sound.



The band fell apart , but quickly reassembled with Wilcox and bassist Rich Lamb,

whose powerful roots rock playing took Wilcox' drumming more into a Levon Helm

direction than his previous Keith Moonish approach. As a rhythm section their

constant practicing, and obsession with Fleetwood and McVie, worried many hipsters.

Propelled by guitarist Frank Bradley's Steve Jones-ish, Billy Duffy-ish riffing,

and frequently adding friends including Marc Denardo on bass, Angelo Madrigale

on drums and turntablist Rick Brackbill, the band was louder than before ( a

frequent performer at CBGBs, their soundman deemed them the loudest band that

had ever played the club), with a live sound reminiscent of The Germs, a Buck

Owens, Bakersfield honky tonk "if a fight don't break out in the first

five minutes you ain't playing right" attitude, and shows that often ended

- or began - with drunken brawls. They began the tradition of grueling touring

that Bon Matin continues today, and with Bulb records to the rescue, hastily

recorded 1995's "Enduro - America's Most Loudness".



Again, Temple of Bon Matin evaporated when most of the band moved to Los Angeles

to become surfers. Its new version was assembled around guitarist Linda Searnock,

not a surfer, but a surf rock visionary, another in the lengthening line of

Bon Matin players more interested in the groove than the solo, and who shared

Wilcox' fondness for world dance music. Helped by electronic sound pioneer Charles

Cohen, saxophonist Elliot Levin, synthesist Greg Chapman (the brains behind

"Ugly American" magazine and Joe Zimmerman (occasional bassist for

The Mentors) , they toured the South and Midwest frequently, broadcast a concert

on Philadelphia television, recorded the rambling, Lee Perry remixes "The

Faust Tapes" CD "Bullet In2 Mesmer's Brain" (released by Bulb

in 1997 and the start of their long association with recording engineer Jeff

Kohlmeyer, the Geoff Emerick/George Martin of Runnemede, New Jersey) and at

the invitation of Rochester, New York peers Coffee, teamed up to become a backup

group for old friend, free jazz (or free blues ) pioneer, saxophonist Arthur

Doyle - before of course, breaking up.



Always too dumb to know when they were not wanted, Temple of Bon Matin resurrected

with Wilcox and old friends Vinnie Paternostro (a super thrash metal front man

- now playing bass and Archie Shepp inspired saxophone ), Merzbau noise freak

Jay Reeve on percussion and electronics, psychadelic folk wizard Jim Flagg on

violin and the Sonny Sharrock / Phil Manzanera fireworks and slinky grooves

of guitarist John Price.In one form or other, and with much help, this band

has continued, pushing its own imaginative limits, and each other's tempermental

buttons, for a decade. Their first outing, "We've Got The Biggest Engine",

was a dozen member electric take on John Coltrane's "Ascension", including

a multi-tracked choir of vocals on "Eyes in Space" contributed by

Wilcox and legendary punk rocker and friend, Mikey Wild, and released by Little

Army in 1999.



The story of the "Starchild" skeleton, found in an abandoned Andean

silver mine, was a space opera waiting to be written, when it was heard by Wilcox

during his obsessive listening to Art Bell's late night, paranormal radio program,

and inspired the "Cabin in the Sky" lp, released by Bulb in 2000.

With a lot of inspiration, (and outright theft), from Paul Kantner's "Blows

Against the Empire", it mixed old timey lullabies and hymns with blasts

of static and feedback. Around this time, Flagg and Wilcox befriended and occasionally

backed Steve Weber of The Holy Modal Rounders.



Through mutual friends To Live and Shave in LA, and on a West Coast tour in

2000, Ed Wilcox met future wife Leslie Q. ( As well as Stooges/ Snakefinger

saxophonist Steve Mackay - now a frequent collaborator). Leslie was already

an established and respected performer, with a spontaneous, folk/punk edge (much

like Steve Weber).She moved to the East Coast and joined Bon Matin. During the

couple's sojourn in Baltimore they began playing with guitarist Mike Bell, whose

garage rock roots brought a Black Sabbath/Black Oak/ Blackfoot ferocity to the

band, which was often augmented by trumpeter and singer John Stocks, plus the

"Stacia" like dancing of Virginia Purdy and the Gilli Smyth like space

poetry of chanteuse Lora Bloom., This band recorded the "Infidel"

album in 2003. Shelved and ignored by Bulb, it was rescued and released by Spirit

of Orr.



A veteran of many solo shows, Wilcox had turned from the stereotypical overblown

rudiments and massive kit of arena rock, and from the clattering cliches of

free improv, towards using a couple drums slung around his shoulder like a revolutionary

war drummer boy running through heavy, high volume distortion, in an act that

relied as much on force and on his singing, as on instrumental prowess. Returning

to his home state of Florida, in the wake of divorce, and reconnecting to his

Southern roots (especially the hill country marching band of Otha Turner and

the voodoo of Exuma), he expanded this Mardi Gras metal approach to the full

band, adding Daniel Melomedman as a third percussionist, plus Cory Neale on

upright bass and old friend, and fellow Pete Way fanatic, Eric Baylies on electric

bass (fulfilling his long held dream of a rambling, rumbling 2 bassist sound

emulating Ornette Coleman's Prime Time). This band, aided and inspired by singers

Rebecca Gaffney and Ramesh Srinivasan, recorded the 2006 Spirit of Orr release

"Monkey's Straw Raincoat".



Wilcox returned to playing something vaguely like a traditional drumkit - still

pumped through flangers and ring modulators - and took advantage of some rare

band stability to delve deeper into Southern Soul and Miami jungle trances on

2007's "Flower Footed Ghost" released by Portugal's Ruby Red label.



At time of writing (Summer 2007), Wilcox, Paternostro, Reeve, Flagg, Price and

Baylies, plus many old and new friends, have begun recording the tentatively

titled "Wet Sky Over Florida Green Fire", a further plunge into psychadelic

tropicalia, (although retaining their "put name of favorite free jazz artist

here" meets "put name of favorite Los Angeles hair metal band here"

attitude), touring the U.S., Europe and South America, and are honored to be

working with Arthur Doyle, Steve Mackay, Daniel Carter and Marshall Allen.
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