TEAMWORK IS IMPORTANT to the well being of the
band. Marc Stoll & Dennis Mitchell don’t mind a bit.
VERSATILITY IS A strong point of No Ties. Below drum
mer Michael Keesy sings amidst oblivious dancers while
guitarist Dennis Mitchell beats the skins for a while.
Now the band plays and rehearses full-time and are booked
two months in advance. They have played many major rock clubs
in the Portland area, including The Orange Peel, Tippers, and
Zaks, and are planning to continue playing the circuit. In a few
weeks, No Ties will even play in Seattle.
Beresford commented, “We have five strong vocalists^ We
were originally looking for .that but we didn’t think we’d come
close to finding it.”. !
Dennis Mitchell added, “We don’t do one particular type of
music. It’s different kinds of beats and some of it is theatrical.”
No Ties plays a variety of music, from Foreigner and
Journey, to Loverboy and Billy Squire. However, they also
concentrate on their originals, using 12 or 13 thus far.
“People take really well to our originals,” Mitchell said.
“We’ve been having good luck. It (audience response) is usually
the way it was out here (at the College).”
“Marc (Stoll) is the driving force behind our originals. He
comes up with the off-the-wall ideas,” Beresford stated.
Ideas for original songs are not easy to come by, but Stoll
seems to have found the secret.
“I get my ideas from girls,” explained Stoll. “The song ‘No
Ties,’ was taken off of a Cling-Free advertisement. I was sitting in
front of the T.V., falling asleep, and I wanted to be single anyway!
So, I put: No one’s putting ties on me, I finally made myself
static free, Nobody’s gonna cling, you’ll see, No one’s putting ties
on me.
I think our most potehtial songs are ‘No Ties,’ ‘Color Co
ordinated,’ and ‘Take a Picture.’ ‘No Ties’ should be on KGON
soon»?’
The name of the band came from their original song. True to
the name, all the members of the band are single. Even though
they are unattached, touring the country is not a considération for
the band at this time, although making a record is.
“We arç thinking about putting out either a 45 or an album,
so we’ll have something to push,” Stoll related. “We’ll probably
have to find a sponsor, though.”
Money is a consideration for everyone these days and even
No Ties is feeling the clinch. They are selling buttons and plan tb
sell T-shirts soon, as a means completing their budget and pro
moting the band.
“Money is really tight especially investing in a rock-and-roll
band. Potatoes in Idaho are a safer bet right now,” Beresford
quipped.
Roadies are a necessary part of every rock band, but they
aren’t always easily found.
“We have an unreliable road crew, you might say,” Stoll
remarked.
“We have two: Doug Preston on sound and Peter King on
lights. Actually we have five but half of them don’t show up,” said
Ron Hampton.
Unusual experiences accompany nearly all bands, but No
Ties has more problems with girls than anything else. The
groupies are not shy.
Stoll said with a smile, “We get a lot of girls lifting up their
dresses!”
Beresford added, “We have girls who will .flash one on us
every once in a while. It’s kind of distracting. We’ll be playing and
look up at the balcony and some girl will have her wazoo hanging
but!”
This is the first college appearance for No Ties, but the
reception they received was warm enough to let them know they
were appreciated. No Ties is oh the way up, and soon fans will
have to pay concert prices to see them. But for now, check
around. They will be playing in the Portland area for at least a few
weeks.
On a closing note, Stoll stated emphatically, “I think we pro
bably get along better than any other band. We hang around
together a lot and have a good time.”
It'looks like No Ties will be together for a long while.
Story by
Tina Riggs
Photos by
Duane
Hiersche
and
Tina Riggs
The serious side of “No Ties”...
Marc Stoll
Michael Keesey
Dennis Mitchell