Top photos by Amanda Balsys. Bottom photo by Cecily Jane Taylor.
Back in March, Darren Springer was sitting in Stephen Guy’s apartment when a suddenly grave Stephen pointed at him and announced, “You will start a band.” A nonplussed Darren replied: “OK.” “Quick,” Stephen continued in an agitated mutter, “name five other people to accompany you on your musical odyssey.” Without hesitating or waiting to finish chewing his turkey panini, Darren listed the following:
“Wendy Huot, lead vocals and backup vocals, and fearless vamp. Carlyn Bezic, guitar and head cheerleading. Matthew Ingle, bass and embodiment of laconic cool. Cecily Jane Taylor, guitar and lead vocals, ordained zen master. I, Darren Springer, on lead vocals and occasional drum banging. And you, Stephen Guy, drums and postmodern standup comedy.”
Stephen ran his fingers through his prodigious, luxuriously flocculent beard, burying his arm up to his elbow in the wiry bristles. “Our name will be?” he barked. Shaking, Darren stuttered, “Uh, H-Hot Teamwork?”
Stephen’s eyes flashed with the murderous intensity of the mad monk Rasputin. “DESECRATION!” he shouted. “Are we some nefarious dance-punk combo from Brooklyn? Think on it, you insufferable wretch!” Darren could not think of anything better, but Cecily came up with Better Lighting, which got everyone’s approval, including that of “Today Show” film critic Gene Shalit. He proclaimed, “You’d BETTER go see this band when they perform at the Bands in Love show on Saturday, July 18 at the Artel. They’re young, they’re energetic, and they got moxie seeping out of their large Kingstonian pores.” Weeping softly, he added, “I’m sorry I couldn’t fit in a reference to LIGHTING, but I’m old and tired, you see. So very old and tired.”
I should add that Cecily Jane Taylor also designed the photo layout, which I think is highly reminiscent of the covers of both “The Kinks Kontroversy” by The Kinks and “Dig Me Out” by Sleater-Kinney. So, there’s that.