Nathan Payne

Artist Information

Biography

Nathan Payne is a singer/recovering drunken funeral clown from Awesome Rockford, Illinois, currently in exile from reality in Los Angeles. A self-professed "puke-a-billy singer playing music for transients only," Nathan's live shows have been likened to an Elvis concert "dipped in blood," in the words of one fan.

Musically, the material is on the darker side, but not without a sense of humor. Most of the material is written and performed in a cloud of flies; the members are sometimes forced to wear facemasks to prevent themselves from accidentally swallowing the flies. Each recording contains some white noise produced by the flies.

Instrumentation

Nathan Payne: vocals, guitar, harmonica

Discography

Angels on Fire E.P., 2001
California Death Trip, 2002
All The Diamonds You Can Eat, 2004
No Destination, 2006

Official Website

http://www.myspace.com/nathanpayne

Audio

Lyrics

• A Beautiful Place
• All I Want

Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• L.A. Weekly
  

  "a specialist in morbid poetics."

• Fran Magazine
  

  "creepy...clever, dark, and funny...avoided all my expectations."

• Vine Street Melodies [+ Show ]
  

  "I don't know much about Mr. Payne. My impression is that he is as crazy as he is talented; and he ..."I don't know much about Mr. Payne. My impression is that he is as crazy as he is talented; and he can be fucking crazy. He is one of those characters that become legends one way or the other."
  
  --Wolf Schmidt, VSM

• Shut Eye Records [+ Show ]
  

  "California Death Trip is a dark and brooding journey through a creepy gothic landscape. 'Don't Wak..."California Death Trip is a dark and brooding journey through a creepy gothic landscape. 'Don't Wake Me Up' [is a] great fucking song."

• Chicagogigs.com [+ Show ]
  

  "Finally, a band comes along that sounds like they know what the bathroom floor of a Greyhound bus s..."Finally, a band comes along that sounds like they know what the bathroom floor of a Greyhound bus station looks like. How do I know this? Because the eight tracks on the Nathan Payne Memorial Service's album "Angels on Fire" sounds like the band has been, well, as the title suggests, to Hell and back. The EP's format is the oft-used but hardly perfected mix of garage rock and blues. The Nathan Payne Memorial Service does it perfect. It's depressing, but harsh. It's sad, but it rocks. It gives those of us who prefer our whiskey "straight up" both a drinking buddy and a live band to entertain us. The four live tracks on the EP translate well, and are ? in all actuality ? the best songs on the album. Payne's punk vocals seem to work better with a live audience, and the sound of the cymbals and bass echo better within the dank, musty walls of a smoke-filled club than in a recording studio. This band belongs on the streets, especially with lyrics that drunkenly circle around smoke, regrets, "tramps and cheap hotels." Take the best of the MC5 and the Doors (I'm talking about Morrison Hotel here), throw in a little Morphine and the Damned, and you've got the Nathan Payne experience. And if this band couldn't get any cooler, Alan Scalpone, the guitarist/organist (every good blues/garage band needs an organ), also plays the Theremin. That's right folks, the Theremin. Don't know what a Theremin is? There's a reason to go check out the Nathan Payne Memorial Service live. Trust me, you won't be disappointed."

• Illinois Entertainer [+ Show ]
  

  "Nathan Payne's voice sounds eerily like Dave Vanian's of The Damned. I'm not saying it tries to so..."Nathan Payne's voice sounds eerily like Dave Vanian's of The Damned. I'm not saying it tries to sound like The Damned, it just happens. The songs have a dark edge, but not in The Damned's vampiric way. Each of the...tunes displays a knack for successful songwriting, as did the sixty-five seconds of him playing live that I heard recently (hey, I was late). Definitely worth the price of admission."

• Listen.com [+ Show ]
  

  "Dramatic, bluesy musings from a man who seems to have emerged from the gothic subculture with a hea..."Dramatic, bluesy musings from a man who seems to have emerged from the gothic subculture with a head full of literal references and set them to infectious melodies, a rustic and creepy folkish backline, and a voice so hypnotizing that all your attention is solely focused on...hey, what's for lunch?"

Setlist

all-original set:

Orange County Sunshine
My Girlfriend Hates My Guts
Bleeding Heart
A Beautiful Place
Love is a Room
California Hills
Goodbye to the Good Life
Sin on Wheels
Promised Land
I Don't Care About You
Happiness is Mine
Prison Days Are Over
Truckstop
Get Yourself Some Sun
George Bush What's Your Problem?

i have dozens of songs. my typical set is one hour, but i can play for 2. i know a few covers, "Sunday Morning Coming Down," a Ramones song, and 2 or 3 Handsome Family songs, none of which i actually play live.

Basic Requirements

Calendar