HEADLINES

Dangerous Curves Rock The US With Zesty Tunes for All

From Montgomery County, Maryland we find the awesome DANGEROUS CURVES, a hard rock quartet who have an eleven track self-titled CD out which runs in at just under fifty minutes long and is the band’s debut album. Dangerous Curves are: John Jamison – lead vocals, Chris Gamble – guitar, vocals, Linwood Turner – bass, vocals and drummer Randy Snowman.

At the tender age of nineteen, singer John Jamison was working at a stained-glass shop. His boss, Jeff was the lead guitar player in a band that rented space in the same industrial complex in Horseheads, NY. and one evening their bass player, Geri, stopped by to use the restroom – the only one in the complex was next to their space. Jamison had a headache from doing a lot of soldering for an order and he gave him a Valium and said he should take a break and hang out at the band rehearsal. After finishing up the order his headache went away, and he decided to walk over to the band’s practice space. "I had never been there, but my ears found the way. They asked me to help sing back-up vocals on a couple songs with Sherri, Jeff’s girlfriend, for ‘I Fought the Law’ and ‘Old Time Rock and Roll.’ They were working on ‘Because the Night’ a Patti Smith song they wanted to do, but nobody could sing it," he tells me.


They asked Jamison to try it and were impressed with the results and he was asked to join the band. "Paul, the rhythm guitar player, did most if the vocals and Geri also sang a few tunes so I got to slowly work my way in.," he adds. The other guys were all about ten years older than John and they had been playing gigs together for years which made it easy for him to learn the ropes. "The stage-fright was 
almost unbearable at first, but the fan appreciation was a pleasant pacifier. I have been singing in various cover bands ever since and am quite addicted to the thrill of playing a kick-ass live show," he encourages.

Bassist Linwood Turner remembers four and a half years ago getting a call from guitarist Chris Gamble, with whom he had been friends for over twenty years. "We had jammed together quite a bit, and he asked me if I was interested in doing a pop-up gig at Hershey's that upcoming weekend," he tells me. The guys played some classic rock tunes that they were familiar with and Linwood agreed. "I was eager to jam with my buddy and meet some new people as well. That's when I met Randy and John. So, we did the gig – without rehearsing – and it seemed to go off quite well," he champions. The guys all just seemed to gel and perform together as if they had done this previously and they had a great time playing. "I thanked all the guys for having me sit it with them. Then, a few days later, I get another call that the guys were interested in starting a real project with the four of us. Well, that was an opportunity I just couldn't pass up. We began weekly rehearsals, learning new covers, and hanging out getting to know one another, and landed our first gig as Dangerous Curves a few short months later. Five years later, we're quite a solid ensemble who has performed regularly in the region and built a rep as a tight, energetic, hard-hitting, heavy rock band," says Turner.


Guitarist Chris Gamble taught himself how to play drums when he was younger but couldn’t afford a kit so he banged on the back of his couch with drumsticks to records and developed a good sense of rhythm. At the end of eighth grade, he was shown some of the basic chords on a guitar by a friend and he just ran with it. "I made sure to practice as much as I could and thanks to getting a few months off from school (the hard way) I practiced almost every day, all day," he explains.

Around that same time, a friend invited Gamble to a concert that really motivated his desire to become a lead guitarist. "This was Ozzy Osborne’s 'Bark at the Moon' tour with Jake E. Lee with Motley Crue warming up for them. Both Jake and Mick Mars did long solos each which I absorbed like a sponge. I became a metal-head that night and I couldn’t get enough of it," he marvels. By eleventh grade he was asked how he knew so much on guitar and he advised that he just learnt it by ear from the album. They dared Chris to learn a few Iron Maiden tunes and the rest is history and he has since played professional gigs with several bands over the years including Maryland’s Pitbulls on Crack, Roadkill, Decapede, and his current, and most awesome band, Dangerous Curves. "My guitar style emulates many of the bands I listened to growing up, but I think my style is somewhat original: very spastic, fast, and unpredictable, likened most to Jimmy Page I suppose. I do it for the love of music and because someone has to keep real music happening to counter all of the industry standard dancy-boy-band crap out there," he adds. 

Drummer Randy Snowman’s best friend when he was ten years old decided to start playing guitar. "I wanted to be a piece of the action, so I decided I wanted to play drums. My parents bought an old set of Ludwigs and I never looked back," he explains to me.


The band's eponymous release is a collection of song ideas that each band member had been carrying around for a while and some off the cuff jams that gelled nicely. "After writing our first song ‘Ripe,’ we all concluded that we should continue our efforts and record an album," expresses John. The band doubled up on their practices and hit the studio only days after writing the last song on the album called ‘Stem Cell.’

The idea for the CD came about because the band had an opportunity after playing together over a year or so, to go into a professional recording studio and lay down some tracks. "At this point, we'd 
written one song, the aforementioned 'Ripe', and we wanted to record a few of our favourite covers," explains Linwood. The band overall found studio time to be a great experience and then they decided it was time to make their mark with a full CD of originals. The guys spent another year writing and rehearsing until they felt ready to record the new songs. "Due to our slightly different, yet familiar musical backgrounds, we've developed a sound uniquely our own that seems to appeal to an ever-growing mass of friends and followers. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to entertain and inspire people with the music we have created. Dangerous Curves definitely rocks," encourages Turner.

 The self-titled album is a combination of all of the bands strengths. "A few of the songs I wrote and recorded by myself and later combined the guys’ skills to make them sound more like us as a band," explains Gamble. "The rest we wrote together. The best part of this band is that we all get along like brothers and nobody has an ego... except for me ‘cause I’m awesome," he chuckles. The band have all agreed to keep writing and recording until they are too old to continue. "The first song on our next album was recorded in Sun Studios in Memphis, TN. That was the most surreal, nostalgic experience I’ve ever had musically. My end goal is to play in front of several thousand people at some event. 
 Then I can retire from music…. or not," smiles Chris. The album is mix of hard core 'in your face' metal and a melodic hard rock that shows a 'tasteful' side of Dangerous Curves' musical versatility. "Kind of like shoving food down someone’s throat while saying 'pass the Grey Poupon.' The old school sound of the instruments really catches my attention as well as the passion felt in any of the songs on the CD," says Randy.


John has always been inspired by music that has a driving beat and strong lyrics and some of his favoured bands are Aerosmith, Anti-flag, Foghat, AC/DC, Metallica, Motley Crue, Judas Priest, Volbeat, and the Hives. Not just for the great albums but also their excellent live performance. "I take that same approach when crafting songs. Lyrics that are meaningful or at the least fun combined with riffs that make you move," he expresses.

 Linwood grew up in a household where he was exposed to many different genres of music such as blues, jazz, rock, R and B, pop, etc... Hearing Miles Davis at a young age prompted him to start playing  trumpet. He then became familiar with classical music and studied theory and composition through high school and when he was fourteen, he became interested in bass guitar pretty much just learning songs on the radio. "When I was sixteen, I first heard the band Rush and was completely blown away by the bass player Geddy Lee. I was immediately captivated by his is style of playing and promptly started learning all of the band's songs," says Linwood.

He then developed the capacity to play bass, sing, and play keyboards in an effort to emulate Geddy's style and he was even in a Rush cover band in high school. "As far as our Dangerous Curves 'album', what inspired me the most, after many years of playing other artist's music, was to express my own ideas musically with a group of guys who shared the same passion for music as I did and find a medium to develop a particularly aggressive tone that was somewhat reminiscent of my favourite bassist," he says with spirit. "These songs seemed to develop from an initial concept by one of the members, and the rest of the band would add to that concept and eventually complete the song. We all knew we had the capacity to create a sound that was exciting, interesting, and just so much fun to play! Most of all, we wanted to perform these original songs in front of the crowds of people who had been supporting our live shows playing covers of our and their favourite bands. Nothing better than being able to entertain people by expressing your own original ideas that you find to be stimulating sonically and intellectually."


Gamble is into Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, The Beatles, Pantera and the inspiration behind the album and the songs was good jams based on guitar riffs/percussion familiarity but with a different edge than 
contemporary music. As a drummer Randy grew up listening to Bill Ward and John Bonham. "I was really obsessed with Alex Van Halen. As time went on, I felt like he was my biggest influence. I would say, if I had to, my style is like a John Van Halen. My inspiration behind the album is really to leave a mark on the world (other than a skid mark) that we could feel proud of. I wanted to know that I could do it, and 
do it with flair. I am certainly not the most sophisticated drummer out there but wanted to show I can hold my own and do it with my style," he tells me.

When John is not performing, he likes to read, mostly sci fi, fantasy and thrillers and he also enjoys playing golf. "I am an avid gardener and I love to eat which has enhanced my cooking skills. Of course, I listen to lots of music both old and new and many different genres. I try to do my part to support local and national acts and charity events," he adds. Linwood has always been athletically inclined, and he has been involved in a variety of sports. Football, track and field, ice hockey, swimming, skateboarding, billiards, etc. He was also an avid reader of fiction and non-fiction alike, with hard sci-fi being his favourite and science fiction is his one of his favourite subjects to read and watch. "I love Star Trek, Star Wars, and other programs of that genre have always captivated me. There was a time when I had an affinity for writing essays and short stories, but somehow that never gravitated into writing song lyrics. I'm a bit wordy when it comes to writing in a concise manner,” he adds.

Linwood also find’s his techy profession quite interesting. “I've been in the field of Audio/Visual for over twenty years. I provide technical support for large scale meetings, conferences, and conventions," he explains to me. "Technology has always been an interest of mine, and I have had the pleasure of meeting a wide variety of people from all types of professions and have travelled to many different areas of the country. Above all, my most important interest is my daughter and my grandchildren. They are the most important things to me outside of music and I am most proud to be a part of their lives and to have them in mine."


Chris teaches students in high school history and psychology and he loves touring around to different Civil War sites in the area. "I also love white-water canoeing, hiking, rock-climbing/rappelling. My favourite hobby outside of music would have to be motorcycle riding. I recently rode across America and back, and led a trip to Niagara Falls, upstate NY, and Maine. Unfortunately, it gets cold here in the winter," he smiles. Besides music, Randy is an avid drag racer and he has raced many cars in many different classes in the Mid-Atlantic area. "I cannot say that that fire does not still burn in me…maybe someday. Also, I really dig boating. I have had boats from 21’ to 67’ and love them all. I think it is the boating community that attracts me. Everyone is so cool…. like the music community where we are. Now, I am putting it all into my band. These guys are just as passionate about it as I am, and it shows in everything we do together," he says.

Dangerous Curves formed when Linwood and Jamison were recruited to fill in at the last minute for a local show due to either illness or apathy by some members of the band. "Everything just seemed to click between us, so we decided to move forward. Unfortunately, the following weekend, Chris broke his leg while out riding motorcycles with Randy. He lost control of his motorcycle while negotiating some dangerous curves," explains John. "This moniker was emblazoned by me on his cast and soon became the band name. Our music is based on the ferocious attitude of eighties and nineties rock, and we strive to rise above mediocrity and provide a show that you won’t soon forget."

Dangerous Curves are quite unique in the aspect that the band all came together by chance. All the members of this band have a deep passion for music, and they all have been performing off and on for decades. "Each one of us has a variety of musical influences that have shaped our style of individual expression that seems to gel within this band. Plus, we all just happen to be in a more mature age bracket in the fifty-year range. That makes a big difference in the fact that we've all been around for a while and the concept of youthful arrogance and egotism doesn't weigh in as a factor to any of us," Linwood encourages. "Sure, we like to play hard and aggressive, but we also know when to lay back if a song requires a different texture in a certain part. We are all confident in our abilities, but we have a willingness to work together as a unit in order to achieve our goals." The diversity of Dangerous Curves musical backgrounds is quite evident in these songs when you listen to the album as some are very heavy rock, some have a metal edge to them whilst others have a bit of bluesy influence in there, with some funky stuff, and there is even a full vocal choir on a couple of tracks.

The guys in the band are a bit older than most metal gods but that means that they apply wisdom and agreed upon love of classic artists into their original compositions. "Our varying musical influences all come together to inspire new song creation. We have a tree expert,  schoolteacher, AV tech, and IT guy all on the roster. But we’re looking for a reason to change careers," adds Chris. "There are so many good bands out there. I think we are a little different in the fact that when I go see a band nowadays, they seem to sound the same no matter what they are doing. We somehow naturally can change our dynamic whether it is a power ballad or a balls to the wall hardcore jam. Sometimes, it is even in the same song," says Randy.


 All the albums songs have a personal meaning for John "It was the crafting of the songs that was the most enjoyable aspect for me. I think ‘Sashay’ is a standout – definitely a crowd favourite and it was 
 one of those songs that just came so easily," he tells me. "The fact that we did it! If I had to narrow it down, I think the hard-core sound in ‘Stem Cell’ is what really gets me going," adds Randy. Chris wrote the song “2 Miles Under” on a submarine when he was in the Navy years ago. It was originally a strictly acoustic song, and he later added the guitar harmonies and drum section to accent the periods of mellow, mundane life on a submarine with the sudden, franticness of intense action. "I think it came out better than intended and conveys the emotions of that time period through an instrumental rather than lyrically," he adds.
Linwood can't pick just a singular highlight on this album as he appreciates the engineering aspect in the fact that he was able to record the bass tones that he had been hearing in his head for years. "I really think the sound of my bass fits with the nature of these songs. Kudos to Blaine, our recording engineer at Cue Studios! Of course, there are songs that I favour more than others, but overall, I think the whole album rocks! I am extremely proud of what we have accomplished," he says with a sense of pride.

As much as John loves recording, it is the live shows that are the reason he and the other guys do this. "We are always gaining new fans and trying to expand our musical boundaries. We thrive on interaction with the crowd and are always ready to melt some new faces," he enthuses. "Performing live and giving a great performance has always been top priority. Granted no live show is without issues, whether a mic goes out or a string breaks, but we always manage to press forward and give the crowd the best rendition of whatever set of songs we happen to be playing," explains Linwood. The band always get positive responses from fans who come out to support them and that is what really means the most. "We have all the necessary equipment to provide a visually stimulating show and a sound system that can shake the roof off, but I think the ultimate goal for a live performance is to play these songs with plenty of drive, energy, and passion. A bonus is to play as mistake-free as possible, but hey, it's rock and roll.

Dangerous Curves have an awesome group of followers which seems to grow exponentially as they branch outward from their home base of Montgomery County. "I personally love to see people singing our songs along with us as we perform live. Ultimately, I’d love to warm up for some big-name bands in front of thousands (if not the headliner…). That’s my end goal," champions Gamble. Randy also loves the live shows. "We put our hearts and souls into the show and exude as much energy as we possibly can. The crowd really gets into it and it all just spins up into a great hard rock frenzy," he says with spirit.
The band were in the red room at Cue Studios in Falls Church, Virginia where lots of awesome musicians have recorded in that very room, which they all found to be really inspiring. The guys produced the album, and it took about a month’s worth of hours all together to lay it down. It took about four to five months total for fine-tuning, additions, and mastery. "Of course, we showed up prepared with the songs ready to go," adds Chris.


Dangerous Curves are currently working on a new album which they hope to release sometime in 2020. "We hope we can wring a few zestier nuggets out of our brains that will feed the frenzied headbangers that we hold so dear. Meanwhile we will continue to play any decent (or not) venue that will have us in our vain attempt to conquer the world," says John. They all want to continue writing new songs and adding a few more covers, but ultimately their next steps are to get themselves up to bigger venues in other regions outside of Montgomery County and expose more people to their sound. "Adding more live shows is a must in order to accomplish this. We all love performing so much together, there's only talk of us continuing as long as possible. We've only scratched the surface of what this band is capable of. Each show seems to be a more comfortable experience being on stage in front of people. Anxiety really isn't prevalent amongst any of us once we hit the stage and strike that first note. It is extremely important to me that we all can rely upon one another and have the confidence that each member will hold up his end of performing these songs. I've always wanted to share my gift with others and to simply be appreciated for what I have been blessed with. On top of everything associated with being in this band, whether it's writing new songs, playing our favorite old songs, meeting new fans, or simply performing live, I just want to have fun. That is what it's all about," explains Linwood.

The band just wants to continue to love jamming together and for their fans. "It’s just a blast working with guys who you consider best friends and loving doing what we do. It never feels like a job," concludes Chris, bringing an end to our conversation.

Though they was featured in recently released Lifoti's October/November 2019 issue 10, you can check it from below link's for your country:

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