B&E

Free Download of Pop Rox from the album: 'Chords To Live By'

2009-12-07T09:38:00.002-06:00

A Message From Johnny Castle

2009-11-11T15:57:00.004-06:00

Johnny C. here. Fresh out of rock n roll rehab and ready to fall off the wagon one more time.

It's been a year and a half since the b&e boys and I have played together and we're bringing it all together on Saturday night just for you!

We have a whole wheelbarrow of rock ready to be delivered, dumped on the floor, and covered in beer. We'll be breaking out some classics and hopefully, if you are lucky, Brendan will do a striptease for all the ladies! So bring those dollar bills for B's britches and a lighter for that slow song.

Cause we're playing the Way Out Club on Saturday November 14th. Come on by. Buy us a beer. Get a little crazy.

Hugs n kisses,

J.C.

P.S. I'll be the one holding two sticks and hitting stuff.

B&E's First Album Shows Up At Thrift Store

2009-10-27T16:38:00.005-05:00

Only .85 at the STL Goodwill!

This is a proud moment in B&E history.

B&E Needs A New Drummer

2009-09-05T18:35:00.002-05:00

Sadly, Widey had to hang up his sticks and move on from the band.

So we're looking for a new guy...

http://stlouis.craigslist.org/muc/1360345976.html

Vintage Vinyl Show

2009-08-16T23:47:00.005-05:00

We Have Shirts!

2009-06-25T15:13:00.001-05:00

Blogger Takes a Liking to Our New Album

2009-06-25T12:28:00.000-05:00

http://dakotapunk.blogspot.com/2009/06/b-take-listen.html

"Okay, on to sound. From track one, I was immediately thrown into a raging pulse of rock goodness. Too bad I was driving, as I tend to have a lead foot when listening to this kind of fast, easy and cheap rock. Most of the songs deal with soured relationships, nights of debauchery, and chaos, and the lyrics and music are a chopped-up combination that supports the meanings well.

Brendan Corcoran, the lead singer, wrings out as much treble as he can from his voice, sounding a bit like Jello Biafra might have first thing in the morning circa 1978. The rest of the band punches out a solid accompaniment of crackle and crunch minced with an almost inaudible thread of tasty underlying buzz."

Read the full entry here.

RFT Homespun Review of 'Chords to Live By'

2009-06-24T08:41:00.000-05:00

http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2009-06-24/music/homespun-b-and-e-chords-to-live-by/

Homespun: B & E

Chords to Live By

(self-released)

Published on June 23, 2009

Chords to Live By is a clever title for B&E's first full-length, but it's a bit misleading: There's only one type of chord this quintet knows, and it's the power chord. The album delivers twelve funny, cynical rock songs full of supercharged guitars and knowing winks; in fact, the Hold Steady's Craig Finn will be pissed that B&E wrote a song called "Killer Riff" before he did. Still, the quintet's HS jones — evident on the lovably shambling 2007 EP, We Regret Everything — has turned from '70s classic rock toward '80s pop-metal.

But even with the amps turned up to eleven and the cheap stomp boxes permanently set to "shred," singer Brendan Corcoran remains the undeniable center of this band. His yelping, affected vocals allow him to hold court with the fervor of a pilled-up holiness preacher (as he does on the opener "We Are All a Mighty Fine Mess") or sputter out of control (like on "You're a Mess"). That the word "mess" is included in two song titles is no mistake — B&E is interested in the sound of things falling apart, both in the love-gone-wrong story-songs and in its sometimes-sloppy musicianship. Corcoran's full-throated strain is part of the band's charm, but his vocals reach their reedy limits on "The Day We Got the City Back," and the shredding guitars often fall out of sync with the shuffling drumbeats. But if B&E isn't quite the shit-kicking bar band it wants to be, Chords is a good start.

Rock Candy Covers B&E

2009-06-24T08:36:00.001-05:00

Old school band photo promoting our new school new album...

http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/rock-candy/rock-candy/2009/06/local-rockers-be-celebrate-new-album-sat-at-deluxe/

06.23.2009 1:07 pm

Local rockers B&E celebrate new album Sat. at Deluxe

Local rockers B&E will release their new album, Chords to Live By, Saturday at Deluxe in Maplewood.

The band plays old school garage and punk rock with some commercial glam mixed in. Frontman Brendan Corcoran’s voice hearkens 1970s figures like John Lydon and David Bowie and he often loses it on the mic, squealin’ and squawkin’ through a typhoon of rage. The two guitar assault is grungy and lo-fi.

The album features backup vocals from Jason Potter (Left Arm), Kat Kissick (Midtown Thieves) and Sunyatta Marshall (The Helium Tapes).

All in all, not a bad listen. Bring your earplugs to the show (safety first!)

B&E CD release show with Left Arm

10 pm Sat., Deluxe

You can also buy the album on iTunes and here.

http://www.myspace.com/bandelive

More B&E shows

Thursday, Blueberry Hill

July 18, Way Out Club

July 31, Lemmons

Aug. 14, Vintage Vinyl

2 Big Shows This Week

2009-06-23T08:42:00.003-05:00

Thursday, June 25 - AdStock X - Blueberry Hill on Delmar Blvd.

We take the stage at 8:30 p.m.

And we all remember what happened the last time B&E played AdStock...

Then the BIG show is Saturday, June 27 @ Deluxe in Maplewood.

It's our CD Release Party w/ friends Left Arm opening up.

CD Release Show - June 27 @ Deluxe

2009-06-17T22:37:00.001-05:00

It's happenin'. You comin'? (Potter made this for us.)

'Chords To Live By' Lyrics Posted

2009-06-04T10:27:00.002-05:00

Wondering what the hell Brendan's saying? Good news. The lyrics are up.

They're posted in 2-parts on our MySpace blog.

Just click here to hit up our page.

Get it.

2009-05-31T23:42:00.002-05:00

And if you want to get us on iTunes - just search 'Chords to Live By' - they have us listed under a strange name/letter combo for some reason.

Fuzz Shutdown Dog's House Party

2009-05-25T16:25:00.018-05:00

It only took 17 minutes before the local police put an end to the B&E house-party gig on Saturday night.

It was Dog's Memorial Day cookout somewhere around Kirkwood, and after blazin' through about 5 songs and at around 9pm the flashing lights and a scent of bacon infiltrated the backyard.

After being scolded by the fuzz, Dog quickly informed the band they had to shut it down, NOW!

That was it. Night over. Hour-long setup, 17-minute set.

But still, we had a good time and the hot dogs were great. Here are a few pics from the night taken by Big Al (Ellen): (You can cruise the full set here)

Cool Things About Our New Album

2009-05-21T15:11:00.005-05:00

Every album's got a story - as does ours.

Here are some quick hits about what happened during the process, who's on it and what you can look forward to once this thing hits for real June 27:

- The album art was done by Tim Marrs. He's a kick-ass designer working in the UK. Check out his stuff.

- Back-up vocal guest stars include Jason Potter (Left Arm), Kat Kissick (Midtown Thieves) and Sunyatta Marshall (The Helium Tapes).

- The studio we recorded at has always been called "Dogbite" - and ironically enough Brendan got bit by the dog during a mix session.

- Three of the songs on the album are remakes from our old acoustic album. We decided to finally do them the way we always envisioned, with this full band (The Mountain Condors, Pop Rox and Killer Riff).

- Our engineer, Rick Harmon, recorded it using Vegas.

- All our photos were taken by Greg Rannells at The Way Out Club in St. Louis.

- Of course, Carl Saff mastered it. He's money.

- The guitar amps we used: Fender, old 4x10 Marshall, Big-ass Mesa amp/cab, Music Man, Line 6.

- The guitars we used: Epiphone/Gibson, Jackson, Gibson

- The keys we used: Yamaha PSR 630

- There are two songs about being a "mess."

- There is one song about Vegas.

- The "Thank You" section is enormous. And if you know us, you're probably in there.

Looking forward to getting this thing into your hands and into your ears.

'Chords To Live By' Exists

2009-05-19T10:59:00.003-05:00

'Chords To Live By' Promo Video

2009-05-13T13:19:00.002-05:00

It's a bit shoddy. A tad shaky. But it does the job.

What the Album Looks Like

2009-05-10T23:19:00.002-05:00

Tim Marrs designed this for us. Releases June 27 at Deluxe.

New Album Release Date - June 27, 2009

2009-04-30T10:38:00.002-05:00

FINALLY - Our new album, 'Chords To Live By' is Mastered, Finished and at the pressing plant right now.

Our official release date will be June 27 when we play at Deluxe (in Maplewood, MO) with Left Arm and Arkansas Chrome.

More info's coming real, real soon!

Next Show...

2009-04-12T13:41:00.001-05:00

Mike Barbour made this for us.

Lyrics to 'We Regret Everything'

2009-04-03T11:01:00.007-05:00

We've had some recent requests to put up our lyrics. And they've always been available on our MySpace (for the first album), but people don't seem to check there much anymore.

With our new album just a couple months away from being released, we'll be putting up lyrics to the new record up here and on our MySpace, too.

So until that all hits, here is easy access to the lyrics from our old acoustic album from '06. Just click here.

Debuting a New Song Saturday Night

2009-04-02T17:09:00.004-05:00

For the first time, we've got the unheard track "Poverty" slated on our set list.

If you wanna try n' figure it out, here's a map of the song.

See ya Saturday night at the Way Out.

Clowns in Front of Clowns

2009-03-28T14:59:00.003-05:00

Finally Playing a Gig w/ The Hail Marys.

2009-03-23T16:47:00.005-05:00

Come out Saturday, April 4 at The Way Out Club and catch us along with one of our favorite St. Louis bands, The Hail Marys. We've been trying to get together with'em for too long. We'll also be joined by Under the Black Sails from KC.

Here's the cool poster The Hail Marys made:

Vote for B&E!

2009-03-02T11:01:00.001-06:00

B&E's in the running for a spot in Alive Magazine's upcoming outdoor concert.
If you're up for helping us out, just go to the link below, find B&E and click the "Vote for B&E" button.
It's that simple!

http://www.alivemag.com/emergingartist/index.php

Thanks!

B&E Finally Has a Facebook Page

2009-02-22T17:31:00.005-06:00

While our MySpace page has a lot more content like music, videos and connections with other bands, with so many people jumping the MySpace ship for Facebook, we thought it was a good time to jump with you.

Just click here and you'll find us.

B&E Does the Double Door

2009-02-16T22:17:00.016-06:00

B&E drove up, caravan-style, to Chicago last weekend to open up the Double Door on Friday the 13th. Now we're home, and looking back, we had a blast.

Despite our ampersand being replaced with a "+" and being listed as "BE", the show was fantastic, the sound was incredible and the other bands were great.

Thinking back to when we started as just a duo playing acoustic guitars at a dark, dank J&A's -- damn, we've come a long way to make it on that stage.

The set was all killer, no filler and we sobered up to some real Chicago-style pizza on Saturday afternoon.

Ended up hanging out with the guys in A Modern Bison, and we'll hopefully bring those guys down to St. Louis for a show soon.

Thanks to the venue, all those who showed up, our friends who made the trip with us and the bands: The Webstirs, Coventry and A Modern Bison.

It was a great weekend, "worst band manager ever" Tad Trier came along and we even got to meet up and hang with former B&E bassist Johnny Castle.

Here are a few pics of the crew and show: (More photos can be seen here.)

Heading to Chicago to Play The Double Door

2009-01-14T14:47:00.003-06:00

Jeff Rifkin made this for us.
Check out his blog:
http://superhappyfuntimeblog.blogspot.com

'08 is Over. '09 is Coming. We're Still Alive.

2008-12-29T16:59:00.007-06:00

Man, 2008 went by pretty damn fast. A little too fast. Yes, ok, ok. We know it's been a few months, but we're still busy working on mixing the record. We do have some light at the end of the tunnel and foresee an early spring release. We'll keep you posted as it all comes together, but it really is a monster and needs just a little more time before it's unleashed.

Some visual proof that we've been busy: St. Louis photographer Greg Rannells took some great shots of us at The Way Out Club down on S. Jefferson. They'll probably end up in our album artwork. The pic above is a good one where we almost look like a proper band and not some band of wankers. Or you may disagree. Either way.

Jumping right back into it, we already have a few shows scheduled for Jan and Feb.

January 9 at The Way Out Club w/ Resoldered and Googoloplexia

February 21 at The Wedge w/ Tight Pants Syndrome

Thanks again to everyone who came out and supported us in '08. We're really excited about all that's set to happen in '09. It's gonna be a good one.

Recording Update

2008-11-04T09:14:00.003-06:00

It's been a couple months since the band entered Dogbite studios, and we're happy to say that we're moving on to mixing the album. The recording already sounds great, and we can't wait to get it out there and into your ears.

Right now, we're aiming for a spring-time release. Don't worry, we'll definitely plan a release party at one of the best venues in St. Louis.

Until then, we've got a show or two left for 2008, so come out and catch us if you can. See ya's soon!

B&E

B&E Heading Into The Studio

2008-08-06T11:00:00.003-05:00

As you may have noticed, we're taking a short break from live shows. That's because we're headed into Dogbite Studios to being recording our new album!
Edwardsville legend Rick Harmon's going to be recording and producing us (he's the man behind Left Arm's rocking album "Dissatisoul").

We're laying down our first tracks in mid-August and the band's really excited to get the project going and the music out.

On top of nine brand new songs, we're recording three of our old favorites that we recorded acoustically as just a duo/trio in '06.

You can get a taste of what the sound will be like on our myspace--it's four songs recorded live in our practice space.
www.myspace.com/bandelive

We'll keep ya posted and see ya soon!

Look Ma, We're On The Radio!

2008-06-24T15:49:00.002-05:00

Here's us playing 'Things Stay The Same' live and "iCoustix-lly" at the iChannel.fm studio.
The rest of our session can be found out on youtube, too.

B&E Survives First Cut

2008-06-22T12:02:00.003-05:00

So a month or two ago we submitted our myspace for an opportunity to open for Bumblefoot (Ron Thal) and friends at the Rock Against Diabetes show in Vegas. After forgetting about it, we just were notified that we made the judge's top 45! They'll narrow it down to the top 10 soon and you can help us out by voting. Until then, let us bask in the glory of the Top 45...

Proof of our top 45 placement...

www.rockagainstdiabetes.org/opening50.htm

New EP 'Pop Rox' Is Here!

2008-06-01T18:02:00.001-05:00

We're excited to announce that our EP, 'Pop Rox' has finally been finished and it's ready for your ears.

It's got four rock n' roll tracks that we recorded live in a basement back in March. It was also Johnny Castle's last day as a member of B&E...so it's kinda sentimental to us lot.

Rick Harmon at Dogbite Studios in Edwardsville, Illinois did the recording and mixing. Benjamin Franklin did the killer design.

If you want a copy, just ask. We'll have them available super cheap, like $1 or $2, at shows and we can always ship one to you.

See ya soon,
B&E

iCoustix Session on iChannel. Catch it!

2008-05-24T10:47:00.003-05:00

So we went in and played a few songs "icoustix-ly" the other day at iChannel radio and talked to the DJ and all that good stuff.
Check it out -- it premiers this Sunday at 1pm eastern and stuff. They'll also put up some video of it too. We'll swipe it and put up here when it's ready and stuff.

Live On The Air & EP Release...

2008-05-15T09:10:00.003-05:00

Couple cool things going on w/ B&E.

First, we'll be live on iChannel.fm Thursday night, May 22.
We'll be playing a few songs acoustically and talking to the DJ. Tune in, call in and all that good stuff.

Plus, they've put up three of our newest recordings from our soon-to-be-out there EP. So head over there and request some B&E! The address is www.ichannel.fm.

Speaking of new recordings, we've got that four-song EP almost ready to go. Once the design is done, we'll have it at shows for real cheap. Or just ask for us a copy. It's a good taste of what's to come on our upcoming full-length album we're recording later this year.

And check out our myspace to keep up w/ our upcoming show dates. (www.myspace.com/bandelive)
We'll be at the Schlafly Tap Room Friday, May 30 & Lemmons on July 19.

Catch you soon.

Cooper's Our New Bass Player

2008-04-12T10:11:00.004-05:00

As you may have heard, Johnny Castle was sent "away" recently, and we don't think he's coming back anytime soon. So we had to find a new bassist last month.

With just three practices under his belt, Cooper learned the set and played a great show last night at 2 Cents Plain. Yep, he's in the band now. Cooper's played bass and/or guitar in West Virginia based bands like Room 101, Hybrid Zero, World X 3, Prank Monkey and Schooner.

B&E Rocks It @ Cruisin' Rte. 66

2008-03-27T15:17:00.004-05:00

We came. We drank. We rocked.

B&E debuted 7 new songs set to be recorded for the upcoming album.

And in other news, the band has been working on putting together a few demos of the new tracks, which you'll be hearing soon.

Here's some footage from the March 21 gig:

B&E Survives Belleville, Ill. Trip & Show

2008-02-01T15:50:00.001-06:00

They said it couldn't be done, but B&E finally put on a show outside of the St. Louis area last weekend, and made it home alive.

We played with Grand Handstand at the Blue Agave.
The venue was great, the beers were cheap and the whole night was fun.

The first band, I think named Mahta (sp?), put on an interesting show to say the least. They were quite original with recorders, loops, strange noises, cigar box guitars and unforgettable Acronyms. For example, H.U.G. stands for "Humping Under Ground."

Grand Handstand put on an awesomely loud and rockin' performance, and we're playing with them again March 21 at Cruisin' 66.

We played five new songs and of course, the hits. Seemed like people were really digging the new stuff. So it sounds like we'll keep making them.

Posted are a couple pics from the gig. Kat Atomic--she was in attendance, but not pictured--took'em. She's cool and talented and smart and stuff. And thanks to everyone else who made it out. We really do appreciate it.

A Killer Finish To '07

2008-01-01T16:26:00.001-06:00

While B&E was out at the Creepy Crawl watching Left Arm's New Years Eve show, iChannel had themselves a countdown.
We woke up this morning to splitting headaches, and to some awesome news.

Killer Riff, from our acoustic record 'We Regret Everything', came in at #14 on iChannel's 100 Most Requested Songs of 2007 Countdown.

To see the full list, go here:
http://www.ichannelmusic.com/?nid=166

Thanks to everyone who supports us on iChannel. We really appreciate it and hope to see you at some upcoming gigs in '08.

Happy Holidays From B&E

2007-12-05T17:09:00.001-06:00

Non-Crappy Starring You! eCards on JibJab

Playbackstl Reviews B&E Live Show

2007-12-01T13:50:00.001-06:00

Another review we should've posted a long time ago. This is from April, an opinion of our gig at the Schlafly Tap Room. Clicking it makes it bigger.

http://www.playbackstl.com/content/view/6092/158/

RFT Reviews Our Acoustic Record - From Feb. '07

2007-11-27T14:39:00.000-06:00

Ok...so we're a bit late posting this. But it needed to be done. Better late than never. This was our first record, when it was basically a duo, plus our old drummer. Pre-Johnny, John and Ben. The second one will be much different...

http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2007-02-14/music/homespun-b-e/

Follow IChannel to the B&E Show

2007-11-12T14:56:00.000-06:00

IChannel Hearts B&E

2007-11-10T13:51:00.001-06:00

www.ichannelmusic.com
Pretty cool.

J&A's Was Cool...But We Still Miss Sean

2007-10-16T09:18:00.000-05:00

Thanks to everyone who came out for what may have been our final J&A's gig. Without Sean bartending anymore, it's just not the same...eNh. We duno...what did you think? Chris was a cool bartender and all, but he lacked that "I will not cook for you tonight" anger-mentality. Got any other dive bars you think we can crash?

Guitarist Gives Lead Singer "...a good pontooning in the bogs"

2007-08-22T13:51:00.000-05:00

"That ponce deserved it!" exclaimed Ben Franklin, lead guitarist of local rock band B&E.

"I warned him that I was gonna give him a good pontooning in the bogs the next time he made fun of the Queen. So that's why I did it."

The pontooned, singer Brendan Corcoran, had only this to say: "Regardless of the amount of pain and anguish Mr. Franklin has put my bogs through, I will always be in debt to him for inventing electricity and stuff."

Working on New Stuff

2007-08-02T11:06:00.001-05:00

We've been busy writing new songs. And they all freaking rock. Especially the one shown below.
In fact, all the new songs are really coming together. And we're not just saying that cuz we're writing and playing the songs. For real! They're awesome!

You're a Mess

2007-07-16T21:38:00.000-05:00

Live at Lemmons - July 14 '07

Craziness.

Popular Malt Beverage Sends Local Rocker On Time-Traveling Adventure

2007-07-11T17:22:00.001-05:00

Last heard shouting,
"Oh God, I can see forever!" Brendan C., front man for local rock band B&E, vanished only to return two-hours later in what's been labeled by authorities as a "Tilt Trip."

B claims he was chased by Libyans through a parking lot to the tune of "Power of Love" - by Huey Lewis and the News. He reached refuge at a local malt shoppe only to find it full of bullies hurling milkshakes at him.
After picking up a guitar and belting out Johnny B. Good (pictured here), B somehow found his way back to the year 2007, sitting in the back of his friend's Corolla.

Reports state the incident occured at 2 a.m. while B was on vacation with fellow band mates in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The group had picked up a few cases of Tilt--an alcoholic energy drink known to cause temporary memory loss, blurred vision and an overwhelming urge to visit nearby adult entertainment establishments.

An anonymous source provided this account:

"The band was enjoying a night out on the town, you know, drinking in the local bar scene. That's when the guitarist guy Eammon suggested the group start downing some Tilt. Now, drinking one Tilt won't necessarily send you over the edge. But while the rest of the group chillaxed, B and E decided to go out to the car and down another pint of that crap. For some unknown God-awful reason, they opened a THIRD Tilt! That's when everything got blurry, and B started shouting things about seeing forever, then vanished!"

It was at 4 a.m. when B suddenly reappeared in the back of the Corolla w/ his Tilt still in hand. Wide-eyed and full of energy, he wouldn't speak about his time-traveling adventure until they promised him they were headed to another bar. That's when he finally started sharing his chilling tale:

"Time travel sure sounds like fun on paper. But let me tell you from experience, it ain't no picnic. I'm not sure what the hell happened or where I went. All I remember is that there were a lot of balloons, bowling balls, clock towers, milk shakes, midgets and an Indian named Sioux. He had a mohawk. It was actually all pretty cool."

Do you have a "Tilt Time-Traveling" story? Drop us a line and tell us about it.

Area Man Enjoys B&E Show Despite Upset Stomach

2007-06-23T12:18:00.001-05:00

Avid "supporter of the scene" Mark Cooper traveled over 500 miles to reach Blueberry Hill's Duck Room for AdStock VIII. Overcoming high gas prices, thunder storms and boring Illinois and Indiana landscape, no hurdle was too high to keep Mr. Cooper from seeing two of his favorite bands: B&E and Dear Calamity. Slated to guest star on guitar with both bands, after a night of practicing Cooper woke up to find himself sick as a dog.

After downing enough Imodium to immobilize the Missippi River, Cooper rose from his sweaty futon and made it to the show while dealing with a fever, nasty stomach ache and self-proclaimed "butt problems."

Unable to stand without feeling ill, Cooper was forced to give up his guest-guitar-star role. It was a difficult decision, but he was truly happy just to be there. "I came too far to be bed- and toilet-ridden. I came to rock, not to read stall grafiti all weekend."

The show went great without a hitch. Cooper wants his experience to be an inspiration to supporters of the scene everywhere: "Get up off your ass, no matter how bad it hurts, and cheer your favorite bands on!"

B&E Live @ AdStock

2007-06-22T16:38:00.001-05:00

2007-06-22T14:36:00.001-05:00

Fan of the Month - June 2007
This month is Rex. He is 26" tall and knows how to rock. He likes B & E because of their depth, how they mix it up on stage, and how the bass guitar keeps his bottles shaken up. His hobbies included sleeping, pooping, blinking, and chewing on stuff. He vomits as well. He is a Capricorn.

B&E's First Blog

2007-06-22T10:41:00.000-05:00

We're finally on a blog. This is awesome.

We're B&E. Here's our lineup:

Brendan Corcoran - Front Man / Guitar

Eammon Azizi - Guitar & Stuff

Johnny Castle - Bass & Stuff

Ben Franklin - Lead Guitar

John Wideman - Drums

Here's a picture:

This will be the most boring post we ever post. So stay posted for more exciting posts.