| ....The
History of The Chang....
The Heavy Chang materialised when Javier
Del Angeles (international rockstar and part-time
wedding singer) met the ramsmachine
(a composer of adult movie soundtracks) on a gig at The Holiday
Inn in South London. After the show, which included the greatest
ever rendition of 'I just called to say I love you' by Stevie
Wonder, both agreed that the chances of two such incredible
musical talents being in the same lobby was in fact beyond the
realm of chance and was in fact nothing short of rock destiny.
Both had come from Australia in search of artistic fulfilment
and both were ready to sign deals with El Diablo, their souls
in exchange for many record sales and the overall greater good
of the entertainment industry and for world peace.
Bobby Boyd was a rapper out of Texas,
but there was a ranch owned by a wacko there so he fled to the
London underground where he remained as a rapper of fortune hosting
club nights with DJ Producers 'Blackbeard'. The Chang,
utilising their combination of good looks and charm, managed to
schmooze their way to an after show party where they recruited
Bobby Boyd as an agent against bureaucratic tyranny of the state
and to make rhythmic poetry on tracks such as Find my way
to free and Fast Lane.
Dov Skipper was playing drums with
Edwin Starr (War What is it good for) and Martha
Reeves (Dancin in the streets) on a U.K tour when The Chang
had manged to blag their way backstage for the after show party.
It was a party of the highest order, and being the last date of
the tour the free Champaign was flowing furiously. Dov awoke the
next afternoon in the hotel with a blinding hangover and tattoo
exclaiming 'The Heavy Chang'. When his memory returned he recalled
having quit the show band and enlisting with The Chang in their
quest for world peace and the Holy Grail of grooves.
Francis Hylton, a child prodigy, was
performing and socialising with acts such as Mary J Blige, Craig
David, Omar and The Afro Celt Sound System. One night The
Chang had managed to weasel their way backstage to an after show
party where they discussed the possibility of him recording with
them. As he was the next door neighbour of the ramsmachine he
couldn't refuse and played off the hook bass lines on tunes like
Freakin me out and Don't leave it. Unfortunately he departed soon
after on a world tour with funk band Incognito. Incognito
were also a band of peace loving spiritualists so he joined them
whilst waiting for his Chang royalties to come through.
Hannah Vasanth had moved to London
from Berlin and was in search of world peace. She worked as a
session keyboard player and was so good she even got the opportunity
to work with Celine Dion, Gloria Gaynor and Shania Twain
amongst others. One night she was performing at London's famous
606 Jazz Club, with her unique playing style inspired by Keith
Jarrett and Lyle Mays, when The Chang who were generally hanging
out, heard her sound. She had spent years submersed in sophisticated
chordal sounds but had not rocked hard for a while, so when approached
to join forces with the hardest rocking band in town she accepted.
Karl Vanden Bossche aka Groovinstein
was known near and far as the Yoda of percussion. He was so good
he even got his gear for free. He had graced the stage with Sade,
Blur and The Gorillaz but still wanted more (and obviously world
peace). It wasn't until a chance meeting at a backstage party
that The Chang could get hold of this master. He was
ready to accept the challenge of banding with The Chang but wondered
if he might also occasionally swap roles with the drummer and
give a different sound to some of the tunes. The Chang being a
cross pollination of communism and democracy carried the motion
and he played drums on such masterpieces as 'Aliens don't carry
guns' and 'Don't leave it'.
The Chang, still without a bass player, heard a funky house track
by Sound Attack with the most insane bass line ever heard.
Weeks later whilst at an after show party they'd blagged their
way into (which was getting harder as the Chang was now 6 strong)
they were chatting to a cool dude from Slovenia over a glass of
Krug. It became apparent he was the perpetrator of the aforementioned
groove and his name was Teets Peamann.
He had heard that The Chang were working for world peace
and killer bass lines and had had a vision that he should join
them in their quest. Which he did. |
