supersonic
Artist Information
Biography
Mollison Drive is an exciting pop rock band from Ventura County, California. With influences ranging from the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Pete Seeger, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Rich, and Miles Davis to Sheryl Crow, this eclectic quintet is equally at home in a coffee house or on a festival stage. Their soulful, melodic and powerful songs are like cold lemonade on a hot day. They'll grab your attention and leave you wanting more.
Chris Hagemann has a voice that stops traffic… literally. After a recent show in Ventura, one woman approached Chris and said, “I was driving down the street with my windows down and I could hear you singing as I drove by. I immediately had to do a U-turn and come in to see what you were all about.” Chris is a soulful singer/songwriter, with influences all over the map. She has been compared to the likes of Sheryl Crow, Faith Hill, Norah Jones, Bonnie Raitt and Alanis Morissette, but as this eclectic list of artists implies, you’ll quickly hear that she has a style distinctively her own.
Ben Liu hails from New York City where he took up the accordion at an early age. Fearing the imminent demise of Lawrence Welk's big band sound, he switched to guitar, lured by the susurrant sounds of surf music as played by the Ventures. Soon he jumped on the Beatles bandwagon, intrigued by their spectacular harmonies and novel chord progressions. He subsequently played in a number of bands whose sounds ranged from the acid rock anthems of Mr. Toad and the Speed Freaks to the acoustic articulations of Arcas. When he isn't co-writing music for Mollison Drive with singer Chris Hagemann, he plays guitar in the contemporary Christian praise band, Higher Ground.
Mike Harris started playing and immediately became enamored with the guitar in 1963. His musical influences represent a wide spectrum of genres from folk to jazz and include Pete Seeger, the Beatles, early Fotheringay, Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, George Van Eps, Larry Carlton and Paul Jackson Jr. Mike started his musical career on the east coast playing clubs, coffee houses, and college concerts. In an odd juxtaposition, he was teargassed on his way to perform on the steps of the nation's capitol during the second March on Washington and later performed on the presidential yacht, where Tricia Nixon was present.
On bass is Mike Furlong . A California native who's passionate belief is that music is a spiritual lubricant for communication that speaks to the subconscious. It feeds your spirit and what better way to connect a fine group of musical spirits than with the creative approach of Mollison Drive. 25 years playing bass has landed Mike in what he considers to be the most musical band he has been a part of. From recent gigs in improvisational groups in Santa Barbara and Ventura all the way back to his beginnings in innovative original rock bands in East LA and Hollywood it has been and continues to be a journey worth a lifetime of effort and commitment. "I am so fortunate to have been welcomed in so many creative groups and my fortunes never seems to run out!". Influenced by Joni, Zappa, Beatles, Tori Amos, Quincy and Steely Dan, Mike hopes to continue this limitless run with Mollison Drive onto another level of professionalism, creativity, harmony and fresh music that will let the audience be there with us.
Doug Conant's formal drum instruction began at age 11 with world-renown instructor Tony Capko. Tony forced traditional technique and reading upon Doug, who, to this day, could not be more grateful. At Los Angeles Valley College he participated in the Jazz "A" Orchestra, which included old (and very old) members of the Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, and Buddy Rich orchestras, to name a few. His major influences include Buddy Rich, Dave Weckl, Carter Beauford, Dave Garibaldi, Will Kennedy, Danny Carey, Japanese Taiko, Miles Davis, and Coltrane. In another odd juxtaposition, Doug is a decorated ninja, can speak Braille, and lies a lot.
Instrumentation
Chris Hagemann- lead vocals.
Ben Liu- guitar, backup vocals.
Mike Harris- guitar, backup vocals.
Doug Conant- drums.
Mike Furlong- bass.
Discography
A music video of one of our original songs entitled "What About" is playing at the Trojan company's website. Go to: http://evolveoneevolveall.com/#/artist-showcase and click on the "Mollison Drive" thumnail.
We also have a shorter version of the video on Youtube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZiQoJ007j0.
4 of our originals appear on our myspace site: http://www.myspace.com/mollisondrive.
Official Website
Video
Photo Gallery
-
Mollison Drive-1
Download print quality (high-res) version (Right Click -> Save As) -
Mollison Drive-2
-
Mollison Drive-3
Press
Setlist
We typically play 2 45-minute sets. Our set list includes the following originals:
Reality Is an Illusion
Paradise
Wanting You
When Will I Be Loved
Crazy Dreams
Black Momba Dance
Set Me Free
Never Fade Away
Over You
All Summer Long
Empty Glass
Never Let Go
Hold On
Every Road
Very Big Mistake
Leave You
Big Surprise
Something More
Our covers include:
All I Wanna Do (Sheryl Crow)
Blue Bayou (Linda Ronstadt)
Possession (Sarah Maclachlan)
Gimme One Reason (Tracy Chapman)
Don't Think Twice (Bob Dylan)
What I Am (Edie Brickell)
Love's Divine (Seal)