FREDONIA - For three Southwestern High School graduates and their bandmate from down Interstate 86, a few years of work will be validated Saturday night.
Lakewood natives J.C. Palmisano, Korey Bastian and Kyle Johnson, along with Kendall Morris from the central New York village of Dundee, make up local hard rock band 86 To Nowhere, which will release its debut album, "The Price I Pay," at Muldoon's in Fredonia.
Collectively influenced by musicians from Nickelback, Red, Alter Bridge, Breaking Benjamin, Sevendust, Motley Crue, Stone Sour, Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold, Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson, 86 To Nowhere hopes to show what four small-town guys can do without record-label backing.
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86 To Nowhere will release its debut album, ‘‘The Price I Pay,’’ at Muldoon’s in Fredonia on Saturday night.
Submitted photo
"It's a testament to what can come out of small New York towns," Bastian said, "and with this release, no matter what happens from here on out, no one can take this away from us."
Fans of new hard rock have likely heard of bands Bobaflex, Texas Hippie Coalition and STEMM; 86 To Nowhere has opened for all three. On Wednesday, the band will open for STEMM once again, along with Burn Halo, at the Tralf in Buffalo.
"When we first started opening for national acts, it was the coolest thing," Bastian said. "After a while, you realize they're no different. They're doing everything we do, just a lot more of it, and you begin to take notes and see what the next step may be to get in their position. You realize the potential to learn from bands that are where you want to be, and you take notes and try to implement things as efficiently and effectively as possible. With widespread promotion through the Internet, bands need every edge they can find to stand out of the crowd. This creates the opportunity to push things just a little closer to the edge."
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86 To Nowhere will open for Bobaflex again later in the year. The band will also play a show with Skinny Molly, which consists of musicians from Molly Hatchet, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Blackfoot.
The band released a music video for the song "Here's To Hoping" last fall. It was produced by SUNY Fredonia graduate Byron Abt and shot over the course of four weeks in July.
Clips of the band playing were shot under the Washington Street Bridge with permission from the city of Jamestown. The bar scene was shot at the Rio in Frewsburg thanks to the help of owner John Curtiss, who appears in the video, and the first scene was shot in Blockville. Johnson's father Jim plays Morris' dad in the video.
Creating the concept for the video wasn't a difficult task for the band. According to Bastian, "Here's To Hoping" is one of Morris' high school friends.
"He fought and fought, but ended up in a downward spiral following increasingly violent abuse from his father," Bastian said. "He stopped (caring) about what people said and thought, no matter how people tried to help. Despite the stereotypical teenage drama, he seemed to enjoy life better than anybody else. He died happier than most of us live."
In the video, the band also blows up a jeep, which it purchased for $300 and later took to a scrap yard, receiving $320.
"Yes, we made money on the jeep and got to destroy it," Bastian said.
On Saturday night, 86 To Nowhere will play every song from its debut album and some unreleased material. The 21-and-over show will also feature performances from Blind Society and Everything and You. The show will start at 10, and tickets are on sale at Muldoon's and through the bands.
According to Bastian, 86 To Nowhere hopes to further validate its existence through future performances and releases.
"Being one of the things we're good at, it becomes synonymous with life ... it's either success or failure," he said. "Which would you choose?"
To give the band a listen, visit 86tonowhere.com or youtube.com/86tonowhere.