Every Thursday Tir Na Nog Irish Pub and NC State’s student operated radio station, WKNC 88.1 FM, present Local Band Local Beer, which pairs North Carolina-based bands with North Carolina-brewed beer.
Last week’s lineup featured Marc Kuzio from Ghostt Bllonde, a Raleigh-based indie rock band.
Kuzio said his upbringing and experiences shaped his music and his life, giving him a deep appreciation for music since his youth.
“My mom raised me on your typical radio classic rock and would sing me to sleep with ‘Beth’ by KISS and ‘Two out of Three Ain’t Bad’ by Meatloaf,” Kuzio said. “Her CD collection was literally in the thousands, so there was always something new I would hear. Being an only child, I’m certainly no stranger to attention and wanted to be able to create melodies I was so intensely obsessed with. After learning the viola in third grade and trying to play it like a guitar, my grandparents bought me a Mini Stratocaster and a portable amplifier. It was all a noisy downhill mess from there.”
Kuzio said the inspiration for Ghostt Bllonde started in high school.
“I met [Canadian indie rock band] The Dudes when I was a senior in high school,” Kuzio said. “I was a 16-year-old kid, and they asked my old band, Coastal Vision, to play at their house. Everyone was years older than me, and it was my first real participating exposure to a scene outside of high school, so I latched onto them like a leech.”
Kuzio said he went to every show they put on, eventually playing bass for their house band, Celebrity Jeopardy.
“After both Coastal Vision and Celebrity Jeopardy broke up, I recruited the gang to join me and put life into random songs I had been recording in my mom’s living room,” Kuzio said. “From there my moniker of Ghostt Bllonde evolved into part band, part party-centric wild time of playing music with best friends and good vibes.”
Kuzio said teamwork is an essential part of his music.
“Everything I write eventually gets presented to the band and takes new form,” Kuzio said. “Without The Dudes, the songs I make are a lot more belligerent and spastic since my writing process is all over the place. Songs we have recorded like ‘When I’m Dead’ and ‘Love is Loathing’ are examples of me without The Dudes.”
Kuzio said spontaneity is key in making songs by himself and with his band. He described his musical style as “trash pop” and “doom wop” because Ghostt Bllonde plays energetic music with cynical lyrics.
“I wouldn’t say we’ve abandoned that mindset, but we’re definitely evolving and trying new things,” Kuzio said. “Some of it has gotten pretty dark, and some has gotten knee-shaking-funky. We just want to make fun music that can resonate.”
Ghostt Bllonde is no stranger to Tir Na Nog, as the band has played at other Local Band Local Beer shows and its members are regulars there.
“I get pretty spazzy and anxious before we play, so I’ll typically go find a place and blast ‘Faberge Falls for Shuggie’ by Of Montreal and shake out any weird vibes but then right before we go on, we all huddle up and do a mighty ducks quack to get connected,” Kuzio said.
Joe Wright, a regular disc jockey for WKNC, talked about several of the upcoming bands to perform at this event in the coming weeks.
“No Eyes, the opener, is a band from Raleigh combining elements of garage rock with easy-flowing indie rock,” Wright said.
Some Army and Lilac Shadows are also performing with No Eyes on Oct. 16 starting at 9:30 p.m.
