I have performed as a drummer, percussionist, and MC in numerous acts over the past few decades. I have now toured and performed in over 22 states! My dream was to play one out of state gig....so I count myself very blessed to have reached that goal, and then some. Below is a list of some of the projects and bands I have performed with. Start at the bottom and work your way up if you want to follow the chronological timeline.
A Little Blitch'n Blues
While enjoying a dinner at The Club at Baron's Creekside (Fredricksburg, TX), the band leader, Graham Warwick asked if there were any musicians that might want to sit in with the band. Meg and our girls might have volunteered that there was a drummer at our table. A few songs later, he invited me up to play a couple tunes with the band. Thanks, Graham!
Fredricksburg, TX @ The Club (Baron's Creekside)- 7/7/22
On this tune, "Ain't That a Shame", Graham said, "Let's bring up the tempo a little bit"
DEAD P.A. - George and one of his childhood friends, Jason Walsh were the dynamic duo known as Dead P.A. They toured and performed in 22 different states in the 9 years together. Much like a club DJ set, DEAD P.A. performs their music in a continuous mix. The sets often convey themes using lyrics, samples, costumes, theatrics, remixes, cover songs, and/or live video production. George was the percussionist, drummer (electronic kit) MC, and hype man, while Jason would control the synthesizers and keyboards, while also handling guitar and vocal duties.
In February, 2003, George and Jason performed their first show together as DEAD P.A., opening for the world famous, Dita Von Teese. She saw the first set that they played to open the evening's events, and immediately requested that they perform a second set, just before her headlining performance. After that night, the requests just kept on coming. During 2003 and 2004, the television show, "Texas Live", used DEAD P.A. music and original score in its broadcast. The act obtained a unique live p.a. monthly residence at a club in downtown Houston and soon expanded to regional touring throughout the southeast. In the years that followed, DEAD P.A. went from being one of the premiere regional Live P.A. acts to making a name for themselves on the national circuit, playing from Miami to Los Angeles at blockbuster shows and festivals (Bayfest, Wakarusa, Houston Music Press Fest), or headlining stages at conferences (Winter Music Conference, South by Southwest). While finishing up their debut album, news came that could have ended their amazing run...On January 13, 2007, Jason Walsh was diagnosed with a brain tumor. A craniotomy was performed 10 days later but was largely unsuccessful in removing the tumor. The mass was determined to be an atypical Meningioma. Walsh underwent radiation treatments and chemotherapy upon recovering from the brain surgery. An actual picture from the MRI brain scan of the tumor is on the insert in the case under the CD of the debut album "The Dead Will Rise." The tumor was the size of a small orange! After months of recovery, Jason amazingly returned to touring and writing. Jason's first show back would be a huge event in Los Angeles. In 2008, DEAD P.A. embarked on a national tour called "DEAD P.A. for President" - where they took their theatrical approach to a whole new level. Once again, gaining attention for their one of a kind live performances, they were turning heads and getting more show offers around the country. In 2009 DEAD P.A. won two Revolutions Music Awards for "Best Live Performance" and "Best Regional Touring Act." In 2010 they received a nomination for "Best Instrumental/Experimental" act by the Houston Press. Around this time, they also released a split 12 inch record (w/ LOAD Records - London), to go along with their other release, "The Dead Will Rise," the "Strangelove EP," and the many digital distributions that were featured over the years. After performing with KJ Sawka from Pendulum, at an event called "May Day II," George stepped down from his drum throne one final time with DEAD P.A. and passed the mic back to Jason. Jason has performed a handful of shows as DEAD P.A. with various artists after George left. Perhaps there are more shows on the horizon....
In February, 2003, George and Jason performed their first show together as DEAD P.A., opening for the world famous, Dita Von Teese. She saw the first set that they played to open the evening's events, and immediately requested that they perform a second set, just before her headlining performance. After that night, the requests just kept on coming. During 2003 and 2004, the television show, "Texas Live", used DEAD P.A. music and original score in its broadcast. The act obtained a unique live p.a. monthly residence at a club in downtown Houston and soon expanded to regional touring throughout the southeast. In the years that followed, DEAD P.A. went from being one of the premiere regional Live P.A. acts to making a name for themselves on the national circuit, playing from Miami to Los Angeles at blockbuster shows and festivals (Bayfest, Wakarusa, Houston Music Press Fest), or headlining stages at conferences (Winter Music Conference, South by Southwest). While finishing up their debut album, news came that could have ended their amazing run...On January 13, 2007, Jason Walsh was diagnosed with a brain tumor. A craniotomy was performed 10 days later but was largely unsuccessful in removing the tumor. The mass was determined to be an atypical Meningioma. Walsh underwent radiation treatments and chemotherapy upon recovering from the brain surgery. An actual picture from the MRI brain scan of the tumor is on the insert in the case under the CD of the debut album "The Dead Will Rise." The tumor was the size of a small orange! After months of recovery, Jason amazingly returned to touring and writing. Jason's first show back would be a huge event in Los Angeles. In 2008, DEAD P.A. embarked on a national tour called "DEAD P.A. for President" - where they took their theatrical approach to a whole new level. Once again, gaining attention for their one of a kind live performances, they were turning heads and getting more show offers around the country. In 2009 DEAD P.A. won two Revolutions Music Awards for "Best Live Performance" and "Best Regional Touring Act." In 2010 they received a nomination for "Best Instrumental/Experimental" act by the Houston Press. Around this time, they also released a split 12 inch record (w/ LOAD Records - London), to go along with their other release, "The Dead Will Rise," the "Strangelove EP," and the many digital distributions that were featured over the years. After performing with KJ Sawka from Pendulum, at an event called "May Day II," George stepped down from his drum throne one final time with DEAD P.A. and passed the mic back to Jason. Jason has performed a handful of shows as DEAD P.A. with various artists after George left. Perhaps there are more shows on the horizon....
Below is a demo of a song we were calling, "Deadicated," which featured the music of Jason Walsh, me on the mic, and a guest verse from our good friend, Jason Barefield (MC Fi3ld). We performed a longer version of this track together live a few times....might be on a mini DV tape somewhere. If, so I'll link it up here some day. :)
DEAD P.A. live at the Wakarusa Festival
George gets wicked In Dallas, TX
DEAD P.A. headlining a Halloween party in Jackson, MS
WRENCH - Founded by Dave Hughes and George Blitch, this duo started performing at George's Boston based events "Local Artists Doin' Their Thang". Soon after, they added TJ Welch (percussion, vocals) and Gina Rebelo (bass) to their arsenal. This group played around the Boston area, and recorded an EP, aptly and ingeniously titled, "Wrench". They left the stage for the last time in 2000, shortly after playing at the Middle East during the opening screening for the best movie ever made, called "Black and Chrome," staring Dave Hughes. After recognizing his acting skills were off the charts, the rest of the band let Dave make his way to the big screen, and they went about their separate ways. Wrench did reunite to play in New Jersey once in 2008...and there were some recordings from a basement session in Vermont...but those will remain, like the basement, very underground.
BAD SUN - Marc Pendleton, David Standefer and George Blitch. Put instruments in front of those guys and stand back, because your eardrums will start to bleed. Is it a good bleed? A bad bleed? Who know, and who cares!?! This trio has played together many times over the years, since they were pimply faced angst-filled teenagers, to their current state of being grown up responsible leaders of their respective communities. This band would play 5 hour long shows, with a mix of original and cover songs, and impromptu jams. The things most people need to know about this band...that might someday be playing at a venue near you, is what their motto was, and always will be... "We may suck, but we're better than Creed!" We had that line on the back of our shirts and once gave one to the late Foo Fighter's drummer, Taylor Hawkins, who claimed, "This is the 2nd best T-Shirt I've ever seen in my life." So, there's that. The band later renamed itself to FUMP!
TR3 (Tape Recorder 3) - Allan Lewis and George Blitch met their first night in Boston at a Northeastern University freshman orientation event on a party boat in August, 1997. The two were going to be competing for the one remaining Goalkeeper spot on the school's soccer team. After discussing their soccer careers, the discussion of music came up. And wouldn't you know it, they both loved the same bands and played the same kind of music...hmm, I see something starting to brew. After Allan secured his spot as the third GK on the soccer pitch, somehow George managed to also make the team as a field player. Allan soon informed George that one of the roommates that was going to move into the apartment with him, had backed out. George quickly gave up his dorm room for a chance to become roommates with Allan at an apartment known affectionally as 311 #3C. Soon after moving in, George bought a drum set (shipping one from Texas was not an option) and they started to perform at shows they two put on called "Television"...at the coolest venue in town...the apartment's basement laundry room. George started to campaign with a local bar/restaurant called "Hubbs" to let them put on a show there. George titled the event "Local Artists Doin' Their Thang" - which was the first of many events by that name. Along with various poets, visual artists, solo artist, and bands, George and Allan played their first "official" gig as Tape Recorder 3 to hundreds of friends and fans. Throughout the years, TR3 would come to play such epic events as the "Our neighbors hate that we have a full band set up in our kitchen apartment," "CunardFest," or the incredible "Spring Fest Afterparty" which started promptly after De La Soul walked off stage...only to end three songs later during the most amazing version of "Mr. Moustache" that has possibly ever been played, ever. EVER! The Boston Police shut us the heck down! The band left behind no videos or audio recording...because it would have utterly ruined all future musicians willingness to ever pick up an instrument. Something that good could only be held in memories, to be told through the whispers of fading memories and blogs on that crazy thing called the Interweb. When the world needs TR3, they might just return. Or....not.
"Local Artists Doin' Their Thang" - George Blitch started a series of events in and around Boston called "Local Artists Doin' Their Thang" - which consisted of various artists convening at a location, to promote, share, and combine their artistic abilities for the enjoyment of all. George would MC the events and perform with various acts during the 4 year run of shows he produced all throughout the Boston area.
She Died In My Arms - the beginning of S.D.I.M.A. came as a direct result of The Moths turning to dust. Rob, David and I decided to try our hands at being a trio. David had some incredible songs he had been producing and we quickly started gigging and then working on our debut album. Once again, we did not finish our time in the studio. For a variety of reason, including mainly David's own meltdown, and my planned departure to Boston, to play soccer and attend school at Northeastern University, the band faded away. There are some demos from the recording sessions that I hope to share here, once I can put my hands on them. We really were a good band, but it just didn't pan out.
The Moths - Chris Hollerman, and one of my best friends, Rob Sides, had just ended their band, Pitch Fizzy, and were looking for to form a new group. They reached out to me and an incredibly talented musician named David Voxx, to round out the roster. We later added Bryan Tibodeaux on the keyboards and we started playing gigs around Houston. We had scheduled a gig for the night of Rob, Chris and Bryan's high school graduation on May 25th 1996, headlining at Fitzgeralds. Bryan had a little incident that kept him from playing with us that night, but we had one of our best shows ever, and decided it was time to record our debut album. We booked our time at the studio and the first day seemed to go well. That was also when it started to unravel. Chris decided that he needed to finish his magnum opus album within a week, as he saw his time on earth coming to an end very soon. He had some issues with substance abuse, and after punching David in the face and getting arrested (for a separate incident) at the studio and being taken to the psych ward, the rest of us decided to NOT finish the album ourselves, and the Moths quickly found their end in the candle that Vendetta had left burning!
Backlash - Three of my good friends originally played in Backlash - Jason Walsh, Jesse Semmes, Rob Sides. HollowPoint and Backlash performed often on the same bill, and I was very familiar with their music. The singer and main songwriter, Jason (see Dead P.A.) had gone through a series of roster changes and eventually asked me to join after their other two drummers had left the band. At the time, Jesse was the only original member left. Jason brought on Ryan Reynolds (who I later stole to try to be in HollowPoint) to play bass. I think we might have played one gig together, but that was it. Ryan and I left, and Jesse went his own way, and Jason was left alone with a bunch of awesome songs and no one to help him play them live. He then create his own project called Population Zero...which was the foundation of the music that he and I would perform together many years later as Dead P.A.
HollowPoint - the original line up consisted of Adam Akshar (vocals), Nadr Nasr (bass), Teddy Douglas (guitar) and myself (drums/vocals). We began our journey on the tie covered stage of Zelda's (downstairs of the main stage at Fitzgeralds), in 1994, with over 100 friends and family paying to see us. That got the owner's attention and we quickly got added to the bill of some of the larger local acts (Dive/Osmant, 30 foot Fall, Taste of Garlic, The Hates, Backlash*, etc) and then to some of the larger Texas and National Acts (Pushmonkey, Skrew, Dethkultur BBQ, Pervis, etc). We performed at all the major clubs around Houston, and made quite a name for ourselves. We even got a shout out on stage from Pantera, after some of our band members met up with them on their tour bus and played them our demo tape. When Phil Anselmo belted out that "you guys better go see your local band, HollowPoint! We just listened to their tape, and they kick some major ass!", it was a teenage musician's dream come true. Very soon after, Nadr Nasr moved back to Canada and we tried to fill his shoes with a couple guys - Marc Pendleton played a gig or two with us, and then later Ryan Reynolds. Teddy and I decided we needed a different approach to our songwriting and we outed Adam and brought in a new singer named Randy. Randy could hit every octave range that Mike Patton (Faith No More) could hit, even though he had a healthy 4 pack of smokes a day habit, at the ripe age of 18. While Randy was an incredible singer, he just didn't end up being the best fit. Without a full time bassist and reliable singer, Teddy and I found ourselves looking into a new direction. We started to work with some industrial musicians that had been working part time with Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails), and we had some very cool demos that featured our songs restructured with synthesizers and samplers. The main guy working with us went on tour with Trent and our band just fizzled away, though Teddy and I would still write some tracks from time to time. Looking back, we should have kept Adam and rode it out with him. But alas, the rash decisions of angst-filled youth are not always the wisest, I've found.
Vendetta - Jack Mott (guitar/vocals), David Doehring (bass) and I (drums) were one of 3 bands to grace the stage of Memorial Junior High during the annual talent show, while we were in 6th grade. Did we play "Smells Like Teen Spirit"? Yes, we did. Did the other two bands ALSO play that song? MAYBE. But, we played it to pure perfection and we knew that song could never be played as eloquently, again...not even by Nirvana! So, we did what any other band would have done at their peak of stardom....we split up! We wanted to give other musicians a chance to reach that same height of fame, and we cleared the path for them all by disbanding. We were begged to keep the magic alive, but it would not have been fair. We left the candle of hope burning for others, instead of taking all the light, ourselves.
She Died In My Arms - the beginning of S.D.I.M.A. came as a direct result of The Moths turning to dust. Rob, David and I decided to try our hands at being a trio. David had some incredible songs he had been producing and we quickly started gigging and then working on our debut album. Once again, we did not finish our time in the studio. For a variety of reason, including mainly David's own meltdown, and my planned departure to Boston, to play soccer and attend school at Northeastern University, the band faded away. There are some demos from the recording sessions that I hope to share here, once I can put my hands on them. We really were a good band, but it just didn't pan out.
The Moths - Chris Hollerman, and one of my best friends, Rob Sides, had just ended their band, Pitch Fizzy, and were looking for to form a new group. They reached out to me and an incredibly talented musician named David Voxx, to round out the roster. We later added Bryan Tibodeaux on the keyboards and we started playing gigs around Houston. We had scheduled a gig for the night of Rob, Chris and Bryan's high school graduation on May 25th 1996, headlining at Fitzgeralds. Bryan had a little incident that kept him from playing with us that night, but we had one of our best shows ever, and decided it was time to record our debut album. We booked our time at the studio and the first day seemed to go well. That was also when it started to unravel. Chris decided that he needed to finish his magnum opus album within a week, as he saw his time on earth coming to an end very soon. He had some issues with substance abuse, and after punching David in the face and getting arrested (for a separate incident) at the studio and being taken to the psych ward, the rest of us decided to NOT finish the album ourselves, and the Moths quickly found their end in the candle that Vendetta had left burning!
Backlash - Three of my good friends originally played in Backlash - Jason Walsh, Jesse Semmes, Rob Sides. HollowPoint and Backlash performed often on the same bill, and I was very familiar with their music. The singer and main songwriter, Jason (see Dead P.A.) had gone through a series of roster changes and eventually asked me to join after their other two drummers had left the band. At the time, Jesse was the only original member left. Jason brought on Ryan Reynolds (who I later stole to try to be in HollowPoint) to play bass. I think we might have played one gig together, but that was it. Ryan and I left, and Jesse went his own way, and Jason was left alone with a bunch of awesome songs and no one to help him play them live. He then create his own project called Population Zero...which was the foundation of the music that he and I would perform together many years later as Dead P.A.
HollowPoint - the original line up consisted of Adam Akshar (vocals), Nadr Nasr (bass), Teddy Douglas (guitar) and myself (drums/vocals). We began our journey on the tie covered stage of Zelda's (downstairs of the main stage at Fitzgeralds), in 1994, with over 100 friends and family paying to see us. That got the owner's attention and we quickly got added to the bill of some of the larger local acts (Dive/Osmant, 30 foot Fall, Taste of Garlic, The Hates, Backlash*, etc) and then to some of the larger Texas and National Acts (Pushmonkey, Skrew, Dethkultur BBQ, Pervis, etc). We performed at all the major clubs around Houston, and made quite a name for ourselves. We even got a shout out on stage from Pantera, after some of our band members met up with them on their tour bus and played them our demo tape. When Phil Anselmo belted out that "you guys better go see your local band, HollowPoint! We just listened to their tape, and they kick some major ass!", it was a teenage musician's dream come true. Very soon after, Nadr Nasr moved back to Canada and we tried to fill his shoes with a couple guys - Marc Pendleton played a gig or two with us, and then later Ryan Reynolds. Teddy and I decided we needed a different approach to our songwriting and we outed Adam and brought in a new singer named Randy. Randy could hit every octave range that Mike Patton (Faith No More) could hit, even though he had a healthy 4 pack of smokes a day habit, at the ripe age of 18. While Randy was an incredible singer, he just didn't end up being the best fit. Without a full time bassist and reliable singer, Teddy and I found ourselves looking into a new direction. We started to work with some industrial musicians that had been working part time with Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails), and we had some very cool demos that featured our songs restructured with synthesizers and samplers. The main guy working with us went on tour with Trent and our band just fizzled away, though Teddy and I would still write some tracks from time to time. Looking back, we should have kept Adam and rode it out with him. But alas, the rash decisions of angst-filled youth are not always the wisest, I've found.
Vendetta - Jack Mott (guitar/vocals), David Doehring (bass) and I (drums) were one of 3 bands to grace the stage of Memorial Junior High during the annual talent show, while we were in 6th grade. Did we play "Smells Like Teen Spirit"? Yes, we did. Did the other two bands ALSO play that song? MAYBE. But, we played it to pure perfection and we knew that song could never be played as eloquently, again...not even by Nirvana! So, we did what any other band would have done at their peak of stardom....we split up! We wanted to give other musicians a chance to reach that same height of fame, and we cleared the path for them all by disbanding. We were begged to keep the magic alive, but it would not have been fair. We left the candle of hope burning for others, instead of taking all the light, ourselves.
Other Musical Projects
My Life Is My Sun Dance
This Audio recording consists of readings from Harvey Arden (from Leonard Peltier's book, "Prison Writings - My Life Is My Sun Dance") with the music of Rev. Goat Carson & New Orleans Light. The release date of June 26th (2010), marked the 35th anniversary of the tragic shootout at Pine Ridge Reservation. The recording won the 2011 Native American Music Award (NAMMYS) for Best Spoken Word Recording!
We invite you to take a journey into the words of Leonard Peltier, to more accurately understand who Leonard Peltier is, and what his situation has become - a crucial battle for Justice, Freedom, and the return of a man's life that has been wrongfully taken away from him. Now this recording is available to purchase anywhere digital music is sold!
We invite you to take a journey into the words of Leonard Peltier, to more accurately understand who Leonard Peltier is, and what his situation has become - a crucial battle for Justice, Freedom, and the return of a man's life that has been wrongfully taken away from him. Now this recording is available to purchase anywhere digital music is sold!
Noble Red Man
When Harvey was asked by David Lee if he was interested in recording readings from the book, he agreed—not only giving a powerful spoken-word performance of Mathew’s transformative words, but adding his own moving first-hand memories of meeting and getting to know Mathew. These one-of-a-kind recordings have now been put into a CD, with haunting accompanying music by composer Jeff Foreman. With great pride HYT now releases this truly extraordinary CD, titled "Noble Red Man - through the Voice of Harvey Arden". This recording is now available to purchase anywhere digital music is sold.
WisdomKeepers Radio
This recording won a Native American Music Award in 2019 for Best Radio Program
While I was not a part of this band, it did feature my good friend, Harvey Arden, and I did help to get the recording entered into the 2019 NAMMYs...