The MadHats
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The MadHats

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"Hard Rock Haven"

One of the most playful, weird, and somewhat eccentric trios you can hear today go by the name of The Madhats. Hailing from Spearfish, S.D., their music is a constant flux of bands like Pink Floyd, Phish, Ween, and a few dozen other bands. They bring all of their influences in to make an original sound, something trios by nature seem to do. The Madhats are also funny, as song titles like “Paintball Mercenary,” “Mint Jelly Dreams” and “Motion Sicky” attest.

The band is comprised of Justin Olson on guitar/vocals, Mike Brennan on bass, and Chris Tetreault on drums.

Songs for the Common MANiac begins with a groovy acoustic rocker, “Miss Catastrophe.” It actually as a bit of a Ska feel to it, with the line “ain’t nothing at all” repeated throughout the track. Olson has a throaty, warm and deep voice, and delivers the lines here with a somewhat rigid cadence. His solo is anything but rigid, though. He has tremendous feel as a guitarist, especially in this track.

“Paintball Mercenary” is an offbeat song, with the riff sounding like a South Dakota legendary band (to South Dakotans anyway), Janitor Bob and the Armchair Cowboys. The lyrics will make you laugh, especially when Olson sings, “You better get, way down.” It’s basically a song about someone who takes paintball way too freakin’ seriously, and one of the best songs on the entire CD.

They get bluesy on “Get On,” with a funky riff and vocal delivery as well. One thing you’ll hear is that the band doesn’t have much time for background/backing vocals. Their song constructions don’t really make room for classic choruses anyway, but it makes the already pared down song styles that much more naked. Not a knock on the band, just a description.

Like Led Zeppelin? Well, The Madhats pretty much take the driving rhythm section of “The Immigrant Song” and bend it to their will on “Romulus.” Odds are that when they play this one live, the crowd is waiting to hear Plant’s otherworldly “aahhhh-ah-ah …. ah!” but it won’t happen here. The middle of the song doesn’t sound anything like the beginning, though. They change tempos and rhythms, and show they can be fairly intricate songwriters.

The weirdest track is probably “Motion Sicky,” a droning and somewhat annoying four minute track. Of course, they do this on purpose, to give you that feel of something … sicky. It’s funny as hell they have the ability to write something this flat-out disturbing and effective.

The CD ends with Miss Catastrophe’s husband, “Mr. Disaster.” If that’s not the case, then it still brings the CD full circle. They save their heaviest and most electric track for the end. Gone are the acoustic guitars and in place is a distorted rock guitar riff. It’s a crunchy, heavy duty song, and you’ll hear that when they play faster, their music is more accessible.

If you are into bands who sound like no one else, you’ll have to give The Madhats a try. - Derric Miller


"‘MANiac’ an Uncommonly Good Debut"

The Mad Hats’ first CD, “Songs for the Common MANiac,” may turn out to be a benchmark for Black Hills music in more ways than one. At the recent Northern Hills CD release party in Spearfish, Tim Andersen, owner and chief engineer at Aberdeen Recording Studios, told us that he had played the CD for some industry types in California, and they were interested.

“Songs for the Common MANiac” is an outstanding CD. It is also musically far enough over my head that I’m wondering what I can write that will do it justice. Rhythm changes within songs are the norm rather than the exception. One of the cuts, “11 on 4,” is in 11/4 time. Obviously, these guys didn’t consider the humorous sadism inherent in trying to make a guy my age try to count “one” where I’m inclined to throw in a knee-jerk “12.”

My ears put an entirely different spin on the story. The CD is a delight. The first three or four times through it, I found myself pulled into the instrumentals, chuckling almost constantly at the variety of musical and rhythmic surprises. The music engaged me so completely that it made my habit of listening to music to review while driving a hazardous activity. The only recorded music I can recall that pulled me into its world the way “Songs for the Common MANiac” does is some work by The Doors, The Beatles’ “Abbey Road,” and Pink Floyd’s “The Wall.”

Obviously, the music is a collaboration. At various points, drums, bass or guitar will step into the foreground, grab the listener, then slip back into the whole, delicious stew of melody and groove.

Lyrically, the album is Justin’s “Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man.” It runs the gamut of day jobs, paint ball, TV dreams and adolescent angst: “Feel so tired, I feel so low/Like an anarchist bomb, I’m gonna explode/Put your hikin shoes on, I’m ready to go/There’s an endless valley between me and my goals,” from “Get it On.”

There is self doubt: “Many times have I fallen on my face/Many ways have I fallen back into place/Can I do the things I wanna do/And if I did them would it bother you,” in “Mister Disaster,” and the ultimate question, “... do you feel ashamed when you’re thinkin’ ’bout/The times you’ll miss cause you lived your life like this?” from “The Mortal Dilemma.”

That’s my interpretation, but I’ve been told I think about things like interpretations too much. My bet is “Songs for the Common MANiac” will come to mean different things to everyone who listens to it. Listen once, and it’s likely you’ll listen long enough that you start thinking about what the songs say. The music is that compelling.

Scott Radio provided spoken word on “Be Someone Else.” For more information, go to themadhats.com, myspace.com/themadhats, drycreekpro.com and aberdeenrecording.com.

I’m going to have to start paying attention to Aberdeen Recording: a regional, state-of-the-art recording studio that has the taste to put out a CD like this. Check them out on the Web and tell them “thank you.”

Hill City’s annual Arts Extravaganza on Saturday, May 13, will feature organized street singers. I don’t have space to tell you who because my one-track mind has been co-opted by “MANiac.” Catch them headlining Hemp Hoe Down today at midnight. Even if you have never bought another regional CD, go hear them and buy this one.

- Steve Thorpe - Rapid City Journal


"MadHats Head Down Rabbit Hole"

The MadHats — a quirky Spearfish-based rock band — turn music on its head. And with the band’s booming popularity, a new album in the works and a music video on the way, it looks like upside-down is the way to be.

Lead singer Justin Olson, only in his early 20s, has been part of the local music scene for some time. He formed the rock band Mystic Relish in high school and put out a CD. One song from that album — the first song Olson ever wrote, titled “Everything Goes” — was actually played on a local radio station.

“I’m not going to say it (the song) was good or anything, but it was a start,” Olson said.

Olson then collaborated with drummer Chris Tetreault in Famous Shamus until two years ago, when the two joined bassist Mike Brennan of Toadstool Jamboree and the MadHats were born.

I listened to a six-song preview copy of the upcoming album (I love my job) and found it an outrageous and totally unpredictable ride, rooted in a range of musical styles, from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Pink Floyd to Modest Mouse.

The album has a live feel to it, off-the-cuff, intoxicating and fun. There’s a reason for that; the songs were recorded in one or two takes. “It was very live, very impromptu. They were performed, not rehashed and rehashed and rehashed in the studio,” Olson said.

I also caught a few songs at a MadHats show last weekend and was impressed. The performance was clean, tight and energetic. Tetreault’s hard-edged drumming shows he was influenced by the band Tool, and Brennan seems to channel Les Claypool. Olson, meanwhile, sings in a mature, laid-back wail and plays guitar in a David Gilmour-meets-Isaac Brock style.

The MadHats have a fresh, frequently bluesy feel and a progressive, original sound; the off-kilter rhythm never lets you relax. The topics are as original as the distracted music, with sarcastic lyrics, social commentary and schizophrenic characters aplenty.

“Songs on the radio are usually on the same subjects ... . If it’s a new single by a hit band and I’ve never heard it before, I can almost sing along because the rhymes are the same, the words are the same, the phrases are the same,” Olson said. “It gets old, so I try and write different lyrics.”

As the band name suggests, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” influenced the MadHats. “Everything (in the book) is kind of backwards and different; it has that hallucinating effect to it, that kind of vibe, and it has a dark and twisted side to it,” Olson said. The Mad Hatter, after whom the band is named, “stands out for being totally backwards.”

Lewis Carroll meets Frank Zappa in the MadHats’ unique lyrical style. “The songs do have meaning, but I’m probably the only one that knows exactly what they mean,” Olson said with a laugh.

The song OSHA, with the pleading chorus “Will OSHA come and save my soul?” is one-of-a-kind — I’m positive nobody has ever sung about the Occupational Safety & Health Administration in quite that way.

The song has a topsy-turvy rhythm and a desperate, gritty atmosphere; I may not know exactly what the lyrics mean, but the emotion comes through loud and clear.

One of the more straightforward songs, “Join the Club,” welcomes listeners to the corporate machine: “So you want to be a member of this team/And wear the proud colors of this company/Minimum wage is what we pay/So glad to have you on our side/Just don’t step out of line.”

It verges on social commentary, but the MadHats isn’t a political band. “I definitely have political beliefs and strong beliefs, but I wouldn’t call myself an expert on politics,” Olson laughed. “If I got into an argument with somebody on politics, I’d probably look like a fool. Music and things are where I’m more of an expert, so I stick with that.”

Music seems to be a successful path to stick to. Matchbox Recordings is releasing the MadHats song “Plastic Scissors” on the worldwide compilation album “Fantastic Day” in the UK today.

The trio is recording an album, “Songs for the Common MANiac,” at Aberdeen Recording Studios, one of the country’s best recording facilities. They plan to return to the studio in the near future to finish the album, which will be played on XM radio, Olson said.

The band is working with Dry Creek Productions, the local company that made the MadHats’ offbeat and sophisticated Web site, to make a music video for “Get On.” “It’s going to be part 3-D computer animation,” Olson said. “It’s going to look really top-notch, unlike anything that’s been done.”

If that’s the case, it’ll be just like their music, and I can’t wait to see it.

At www.themadhats.com, visitors can listen to songs, get info on upcoming performances and sign up for the monthly newsletter. Bonuses for joining the MadHats mailing list include occasional freebies, such as the seven-minute single the band recently recorded that is provided at no charge to readers.

The band also has a MySpace account at www. myspace.com/themadhats, so you know they’r - Rapid City Journal/Ruth Milne


""Plastic Scissors" Review"

Hailing from South Dakota USA, the Madhats are definitely from the tradition of American whacked out art bands. But there is more than just arty affectation here. Think Talking Heads, maybe Violent Femmes? Hard to define rhythm patterns and crazy arrangement. This is a very mixed up sound that hangs together perfectly none the less. Perhaps a tad too sophisticated for the pop market, The MadHats are delivering believable modern music. - Dave Chislett/music journalist


Discography

'Method for the Madness' - 2004
"Plastic Scissors" on 'Fantastic Day' - 2006
"Curious Joe" - Internet Single - 2006
'Songs for the Common MANiac' - 2006
"Get On" - Music Video
'Flight of the Jabberwock' - 2007

MadHat's music has seen countless airplay on the following, but not only, live and Internet radio stations and podcasts: The Creepy Sleepy Podcast, 89.1 The Buzz, 95.1 KSKY, The Schwagcast, Soundtrip Podcast, Matchbox Radio 24, Radio Freakout, Hotel Coffee Podcast, Styrofoam Radio, Bad Dawg Radio, Antecubital Liposuction Podcast, and Skye Radio!

The MadHat's album, 'Songs for the Common MANiac,' can be purchased at many great retailers including: Itunes, Amazon.com, Emusic.com, Borders Bookstores, MusicGremlin.com, CDbaby.com, and many more.

Photos

Bio

The MadHats have quickly become one of the premier live bands in the Midwest. Their high energy performances and deranged musical arrangements make them a one of a kind musical spectacle. The MadHat’s three piece lineup consists of Justin Olson on guitar and vocals, Mike Brennan on bass guitar, and Chris Tetreault on the drums.

The MadHat’s music offers an original sound in a mess of current pop music forms and stylings. Satirical lyrics blend with progressive compositions, while musicianship takes center stage. Constant rhythmic and dynamic changes and mixing of odd and even time signatures characterizes The MadHat's sound. A "Hat’s" fan describes them as being a “smoothie blended on high…,” alluding to their mixing of a variety of musical forms and incredible energy. The MadHats are a totally improvisational experiment, and their music is an intoxicating, psychedelic marmalade with a hard blues/rock bite to it. A music critic for "The Rapid City Journal" describes The MadHat's music as an, "outrageous and totally unpredictable ride, rooted in a range of musical styles, from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Pink Floyd to Modest Mouse." "[The MadHats] turn music on its head. And with the band’s booming popularity, a new album in the works and a music video on the way, it looks like upside-down is the way to be." Even music's own mad scientist, Keller Williams, quoted The MadHats as being "fantastic."

The MadHat's first full-length album, 'Songs for the Common MANiac,' was released in 2006 by the independent label, Aberdeen Originals. The band then released a live/animated music video for the single "Get On." The album has seen great reviews, radio play, and distribution with giants such as Itunes, emusic, rhapsody, and Amazon. Just recently, The MadHats released their much anticipated sophomore album 'Flight of the Jabberwock.'

The MadHats are building a fanbase in the trenches by continually providing intense and mesmerizing live performances all over the Midwest. Keep your eye on The MadHats as their career and endeavors continue to shake the world of music!