April 2, 1997

A friend of mine was just remarking the other day about how you hear classic, blues-oriented rock on the radio pretty often these days, but you really don't see many bands playing it. Take a look at who's playing on any particular weekend, and you'll probably notice the same thing: plenty of garage-punk type stuff, loads of alternative, touring bands, and a lot of house-band dance groups...But where's the rock and roll?

Dave Fiester's Groove Monsters, who played the Junkyard on Saturday night, fill this void. These guys have been quietly gigging together for years but seem to have escaped popular attention. I first discovered them one night at Cocoa Beach (their home base), and I have seen them several other times - always to my musical satisfaction. Nothing fancy; just good blues standards and covers by such classic and blues legends as the Allman Brothers, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Freddie King...the list goes on. You don't go to a Groove Monsters gig to hear new music - you go to have a great time rocking out with a band who takes its music seriously.

Frontman Dave Fiester rips up on everything from wailing Stratocaster solos to menacing slide to growling vocals - he even plays a solid blues harp. Backing him is a solid band made up of drummer-fiend, Mike Wright, Mark Glisson holding down the foundation (that's bass), and Ron Texera smokin' on the keyboards.

This whole band can lay down a solid jam and take it to thundering heights.

For me, that's what rock is all about.

Dan Leeds I may have broken the dreaded 30 threshold, but internally I still feel like I stopped getting older some time around 25 or so. Yea, I've become more responsible and maybe even a little more ambitious, but not so much that I've lost track of my guiding ideals or my ability to play. While getting older may be inevitable, aging is much more relative. What else is there? :) Other Articles I've Written