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Last Updated:
Apr 22nd, 2008 - 11:57:34 |
Rock 'N' Roll Day Jobs
What Do Death, Sneakers, Candy and Beer Have In Common?
I’m about to go out on a limb here and make a huge assumption: you know someone in a band. If so, then you know the work they (should) put in, week-in and week-out, rehearsing for a show or recording in the studio, the endless nights, the coffee and cigarettes diet, the mood swings and the sudden bursts of creative outpour. And you know that this all takes place between the hours of 9 p.m. and 5 a.m.
But what about that other 9-to-5? The one that gets the bills paid on time, the one that keeps the band van running (on empty, as it were), the one that provides the sole reason to wake before the clock strikes noon.
Real Detroit took the opportunity to explore this world with some of the area’s most talented performers. From funeral homes to the racks of Nieman Marcus, Real Detroit caught up with performers who delve into the worlds of custom kick glamour, emergency room horror and social security comfort. From HIV therapy research to examinations of malts and barley, dandy candies and balancing trays of food and beat-matched grooves, RDW clocked in, put in some overtime and went to work.
Matt Roast
Famously known around town as the drummer of The Muggs, Matt Rost has been a funeral director for ten years at his family’s funeral home, R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes & Cremation Services. Opened in 1910 by his great grandfather, Rost decided to get into the family business after going to school and deciding it was dull. “I wasn’t forced like a lot of people think,” Rost says of his move into the funeral business. “I was in college and everything seemed kind of boring. Every day is different here and, more importantly, you’re helping people.”
Through the business, Rost’s daily life revolves around servicing families who must make hard decisions in an already tough time. As a Funeral Director, Rost is involved in preparing for funerals, answering phone calls and talking to patrons about the options they have. “It’s not really a desk and office kind of job. I don’t even have an office,” he says of his work. “I usually help out with funerals and set up chairs. A lot of times people just walk in with questions and I answer those. I spend a lot of time getting death certificates signed by doctors.” Life is pretty normal for the most part at R.G. and G.R. Funeral Homes, but there are always the ever-pressing questions about embalming and cremation. Rost says for the most part he doesn’t spend much time doing either. In fact, he had never even seen an embalming process done until he went to Wayne State to study mortuary science. “Embalming is part of my job, but it’s not like I’m sitting in the basement embalming all day,” Rost says. Although he sometimes struggles with being around so much death, he tries not to let it affect his daily life outside of work. “You just have to have a caring attitude and know that the family’s day is going to be worse than yours.”
When Matt does break away from the seriousness of his work, he can often be found with his good friends Danny Methric and Tony Denardo playing shows. After a short stint on the Fox reality show The Next Great American Band, The Muggs came back from Hollywood with a renewed energy. “We wanted to record this a year ago,” Rost says of the seven-year wait for the band's new album. Recorded at The Tempermill and produced by Jim Kissling, The Muggs' new record features 11 songs that runs the gamut of stylings, featuring some slowed down numbers and the typical monstrous Muggs jams that we’ve come to expect. “The first album was a bit like kids going crazy in the studio,” Rost says. “We learned a lot from that experience and we brought new things in this time around. I brought in a 30-inch marching drum.” — Eric Allen
The Muggs • 4/25 • Detroit Music Awards
Roland Coit
The Store That Kicks Built
I used to live across the street from this kid who was obsessed with playing his music hella loud while sitting in his driveway, playing basketball, cavorting with his friends and secretly checking out my mom. Years later, that same guy was the man around town with an undeniable gift for knowing about the latest hits, not just playing them at obscene levels, only this time he was for hire. DJ Phrikshun busily made a name for himself in association with all sides of hip-hop: DJing, MCing and just being an all-around cool cat. Besides being able to drop tracks and spit lyrics alongside Illite, his partner in rhyme, the MC now known as Octane has a shoe game that is notoriously slick.
So, how does one go from sneaker aficionado to sneaker purveyor? Octane says, “I look at sneakers all day on the Internet, all day trying to find the newest hot spot to go to [to get them] and it was just a matter of thinking, ‘Where can I take this?’ I knew I wanted to own my own business, I just didn’t know what.” Octane adds, “Your dream profession is what you would do if you weren’t getting paid for it. So, to me, that was hip-hop, or, one day I was just sitting at home and it just came to me … ‘Sneakers!’” Thus, Octane and Burn Rubber co-owner Rick Williams took on this venture to evade a working-stiff past. “When you’re coming up and you’re 21 or 22, you’re trying to find yourself and I never really wanted a desk job or a cubicle job,” he adds.
The quaint shop on Fourth Ave. in Royal Oak is appointed with a vibrant selection of some of the biggest underground names in street wear for both men and ladies. According to Octane, the agreement between fashion and hip-hop is as apparent as Run DMC and shell-toes. “As an MC, a hip-hop artist and a DJ, one of the first things to consider is image,” says Octane. He adds, “When you see somebody on stage — and this goes back to Big Daddy Kane and Kool G Rap back in the day — one of the first things you say is, ‘Man, look at what he has on!'"
Asking Octane to pick his favorite shoe is like asking a father to pick his favorite child. “It’s just, like, so many shoes, and different time frames of your life … Y’know, I had someone ask me this in an interview and I ducked the question … it’s always a toss-up!" Eventually, he settled on the Nike Undefeated, no-liner, and the Heineken Dunk as his favorites for the last five to six years of his life. “I don’t like to say I’m a collector, but the Heineken Dunk is what made me pay attention to what was really going on. It just took my mind over. Ever since then, it’s nothing to drop $250 on a pair of shoes.” — Carra Payne
Get more kicks: burnrubberdetroit.com
Tasha Valdez
Rock 'N' Research
Meet the quintessential rock ‘n’ roll frontwoman: Tasha Valdez. This exotic and staggeringly beautiful woman has a fierce set of vocal chords that brought her to the stage when she was just a girl. Now, Valdez is a woman to be reckoned with. Having fronted Jiva and Fall Prey, two hard/alternative rock outfits, in recent years, Valdez is looking to branch into a solo, singer/songwriter career. When not breaking hearts onstage, Valdez works towards finding drug treatments for HIV. Beauty, brains and bodacious stage presence is a deadly combination, indeed.
So, Tasha, what exactly do you do and how long have you been at it?
I do pediatric, adolescent and maternal HIV research for WSU at CHM. My team does mostly drug studies, but we are usually running at least one behavioral study related to the drug research. Our goal is to find better ways to treat and prevent HIV in children, young adults and pregnant women. I’ve been with WSU for a little over two years.
Does your rock star nightlife interrupt with such a professional day job?
Nothing six cups of coffee and a mid-day nap can’t fix. I love my managers because they take the work very seriously, yet are flexible and respect their staff. We have more vacation and personal time than anyone I know, and I can use it anytime if I have to go out of town for a gig, or have a photo shoot during the day.
Do most people at your job know what you do?
Normally I would promote to every living soul within ear/cyber shot, but the people I work with aren’t exactly crazy, heavy rock concert-types. Perhaps as I move forward with my solo career, I might be a little more open.
So, is your life like Doctor Jekyll & Ms. Hyde?
Yes, it is very strange. Last year, when I played Warped Tour, I was crazy short on cash and vacation time, so after we played one of the biggest touring festivals in the world, I pulled my hair back, took off about 13 pounds of leather and metal and went back to the hospital to finish a protocol. I also have a tendency to blurt out extremely nerdy things in conversation with other musicians. This is especially uncomfortable around the Warped Tour set, as I try hard to play down my “adult, well-adjusted, contributing member of society” status in that company. Being part rocker I can never feel too nerdy, and being part researcher I can never get out of touch with reality. — Travis R. Wright
Good causes: childrensdmc.org/donation & myspace.com/tashavaldezmusic
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