Meet The Band

You want some rock 'n' roll?

The Stink are determined that they will be what they will be and that, in UK terms, is a young rock band.

Are they Punk? No not really, but that does not mean they can't be raw and fresh and new.  In an earlier decade they would have been lumped together with bands like The Kinks, Dave Clark five and the Stones.  If they had been around later they would have been in there with Oasis,  Pulp and Blur, but REM would have had a look in too.

Bring it right up to date and they would have loved the White Stripes and Radio Head and would have wanted to play at Glastonbury so much they would have shot their bassist for the chance.

Don't tell Smell.

Influences

Hendrix
Doors
Dylan
Zeppelin
Velvet Underground
The Who
Janis Joplin
Everyone from Woodstock
Ramones
Springsteen
Kilburn and the High Roads
The Band
Bob Marley

Smell - Lead Vocals / Bass

What the hell do you say about Smell?

Melvin Arnold Lane was born in 1959, which he is pretty certain is important in some way he has yet to discover. His parents met at Uni and have never really got it out of their system. 

Smell was born to sing and is pretty good, considering he has never had a lesson. He is an artist as well as a musician, but his lack of confidence meant that he didn't put his best work into his O-Levels, but hid it at home.

He writes about what he sees and can feel. He will often pick a stranger in the street and make up a story about them or guess what they are thinking. He likes being a kid, thinks it is important, but has a strong political streak.  He is useless at loves songs. He doesn't know what love is and cant work out how to write about it without going mad in the process.

He really doesn't care what other people think about him, except one person.

Instruments: Bass and Lead Vocals

Favourite Artists: The Who, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Little Feat, The Band, Bob Dylan,  Hendrix, Jethro Tull,  Bob Marley, Neil Young, 

Aroma

Drummers should have attitudes. This one certainly has.

Alannah Doherty was born in Dublin but has lived in North London since she was eight years old.  The youngest of a big family, her accent has hardly softened at all, which gives most of her opinions an extra edge. Her parents bought her a drum kit so she would hit it rather than her big brothers.

She is greatly influenced by the minimalist playing of both the big band jazz drummers and the reggae drummers. Unfortunately she also loves Keith Moon and Ginger Baker, especially when she is annoyed with everyone.  She has the biggest collection of everyone else's hairbands in London.

Favourite Instruments: Drums, Percussion, anything she can hit. Piano.

Favourite Artists: The Who, Cream, Janis Joplin, Lou Reed, Ramones

Haze - Rhythm Guitar

Terry "Haze" Hastings is one of those people we all knew as kids that was just bigger and older seeming than the rest of us. He is taller, more solid, speaks more calmly and just "gets" people in a way that Smell probably never will.

His family are from Liverpool but he has lived most of his life in North London. His uncle, often known as Captain Hastings, is about as Scouser as you can get. Even other Scousers do not understand him when he loses it. 

Haze is a pretty good singer, but does not like being up front so is content with backing vocals. He is in the band just for the music really and loves every minute of it.

Instruments: Guitar, bit of piano.

Favourite Bands: Kinks, Led Zeppelin,  Doors, The Band

Fart - Keyboards

Leonard Jones's family are Jamaican by birth and attitude, or at least his parents are. His father spends a lot his time in Jamaica or South London where he has an import/export business. His mother believes that Jumbo Jets are there to be drowned out and does, regularly. Fart himself spends half the time being very North London and slightly scared of his mother.

His humour is on the silly side, which is probably an age thing, but despite the North London accent, is conscious of his Jamaican heritage and will defend it to the line.

He plays a Fender Rhodes because he can't carry a piano round but really, really wants a Hammond B3 with Leslie.  He has a great love of rock music and likes adding distortion to his sound whenever he can get away with it.  

Favourite Instrument: Piano

Favourite Bands: Marley, Little Feat, Sex Pistols

Stench - Lead Guitar

Harold Waldman, once known as "Stench the Kid" has always been small for his age, hence the kid reference which he hates. No, really hates. Do not add the word Kid unless you want a facefull of Stench. 

Jewish by birth, though atheist by inclination, he has a healthy relationship with his Rabbi which consists of long philosophical arguments outside the Wimpy House, often accompanied by Stench waving a hamburger with cheese in it. If he doesn't make it as a musician he is probably set to be the next Jackie Mason.

He co-writes many of the songs with Smell.

Instruments: Piano, Guitar and a bit of Violin

Favourite Thing: His Gretsch semi-acoustic given to him by rich grandparents in exchange for him attending synagogue for a year. 

Favourite Artists: Billy Holiday, Clapton, Rory Gallagher - lots of Rory!