Music Style Progressive Rock

Artist History The beginnings of Mindworm date back to the summer of 1997, when drummer Shawn Malone answered an ad placed by keyboardist / vocalist Kirk Barnes, who was looking to form a progressive rock group in the Atlanta area. Shawn was involved in another local Atlanta group, Hooray For Buzzy, which was a power-pop trio, much in the tradition of The Police, Elvis Costello, etc....which was just the impression that Kirk had of Shawn as he pulled up to Kirk's garage in Norcross in his '79 white Caprice station wagon with his buzzed haircut and Ludwig kit- "this guy is a punk drummer....do I know any Misfits tunes?" is what ran through Kirk's mind. But when the two got down to playing Out Of Uniform, which to this day is a Mindworm favorite, fondly remembered as the "first" song Kirk and Shawn ever played together, Kirk heard the drummer he had been looking for. While Shawn was into the fast "four-on-the-floor" Police/Attractions style of drumming, his real passion lie in the progressive approach of his heroes like Phil Collins and Bill Bruford.....and he was a pretty quiet drummer, much to Kirk's liking....hardly the punk rocker he had anticipated! Likewise, Shawn had finally heard what he had been looking for for so long in Kirk - a great keyboardist, true to the progressive masters like Tony Banks, with a great setup of basically Hammond/piano/arp, a truely original, natural vocalist, and a songwriter who could successfuly merge interesting and complex music with memorable and catchy melody, which to Shawn, has always made the best progressive music. Shawn was happy to hear the classical principles and approach to compostion that Kirk employed, which was always the thing Shawn had found missing with his other attempts at progressive music. And both Kirk and Shawn remember how it seemed that everything they played that day immediately clicked and how comfortable and natural it all felt. Shawn remembers leaving Kirk's that day dazed and excited, almost in disbelief that he had finally found someone like Kirk....they quickly forged a partnership and at the same time became fast friends. While this was the beginning of Mindworm as a functioning group, the true origin of the much of Mindworm's music dates back over 14 years, when many of the songs were written by Kirk....Out Of Uniform, Moving In Moving Out, and many others, are all songs that Kirk has had for a long time, some of them even recorded and played by other groups of his in the past, but each time, each song getting a different treatment, just as Mindworm has done. It was the strength of these songs that made an impression on Shawn and fueled his desire to work with Kirk. Shawn's drumming seemed to fit right in with these songs (to him, almost as if he had been in on writing them from the start) and many of his suggestions and additions to the songs clicked equally as well with Kirk's vision. But still, they were only two....they needed a band.... It is a difficult task finding musicians for a progressive rock group. First, the knowledge of what a progressive group is trying to accomplish is not a common principle among most musicians, unlike the blues, for instance, where most musicians could sit in and play and understand the structure and where the music is going without much confusion. So this narrows the field....Secondly, is the style and technique needed to meld the musicians together. These styles and techniques can be far-reaching and varied, but whatever they may be, the must ultimately gel somehow to unify the sound of the band. Otherwise the group will end up sounding like many different musicians going in many different directions at once - which was not the goal for Mindworm. So the field narrows again.....Lastly, the prospect of being in a progressive rock group in these times is not very promising as far as commercial success, or any kind of success for that matter. And usually when you mention "Prog" or "Genesis" or "Yes", most musicians run in the opposite direction as fast as they can....a very frustrating thing indeed.....and so the field has narrowed to a tiny anthill of musicians, the majority of which, when you meet them, seem wrapped up wanting to actually BE Genesis or Yes, exact duplicates, with no real aspirations of making good original music and trying to do something different, music only rooted in progressive principles and ideas, not STEALING them - either that or they just want to talk about how many bootlegs they have and where can they get this or that tour from 1973 and have no real desire to actually WORK on the music....so now we are left with about 2 musicians out of the whole of Atlanta!!! Enter Woody Crawford....a legend in the Mindworm story. A bass player with true commitment and drive, but a healthy appetite for alcohol to match, bless him. Shawn and Kirk believed Woody would give them the push they needed, a person with ambition, but in the end, his problems hindered his progress, and that of the band, also. He was at the root of many extraordinary and crazy happenings in and outside of the band, some hilarious, some insane, and some that will hopefully never happen again. Woody was with Mindworm for about 2 years, with a rotating cast of guitarists (including the irrepressible "Peanut" who actually played guitar with the band for quite a while), and while Shawn and Kirk loved Woody as a brother, his problems soon became too much, and they ceased to work together any longer. But during his time in the group, Woody made many important songwriting contributions, much of which still remain intact in Mindworm's music. His bass playing worked well with Shawn's drumming, and while he wasn't a highly melodic player (he was more of a rhythmic player) he did have a big part in Mindworm's early sound and is considered part of the "classic" lineup of the early days. And it was during his tenure that Mindworm found the other member of the "classic" lineup, who still remains today - Sean Tonar.... Shawn remembers the day in Kirk's new house in Alpharetta, where the band played now, that Kirk rather off-handedly said, "Oh, I found the guy..." Kirk played Shawn a tape of Sean and immediately it was obvious this WAS the guy! Another player who seemed tailor-made for Mindworm's direction. A versatile talent with a vast array of his own songs, much like Kirk, all ready to be intergrated into the Mindworm sound. Sean had a unique sound and style and a great knowledge of harmony that proved to be the perfect component to the classical approach to composition that the band wanted to explore. Sean added depth and harmonic richness to the group and also became a good friend. So Kirk, Shawn, Sean, & Woody played together for the better part of a year. Sean and Kirk began collaborating on pieces, which yielded great results. The end section of Trolley, for example, was a progression of Sean's, upon which Kirk built the haunting vocal melody. Things seemed to be going well, but problems with Woody were escalating, and at the beginning of 2000, Woody departed and the band went on hiatus. During the summer of 1999, Shawn had moved to Alpharetta, as Kirk had, and had begun assembling a small studio & rehearsal space there. After Woody's departure and a break at the beginning of 2000, Kirk and Shawn reconvened and began writing and recording, working on new material as well as attempting to record much of the older material, as definitive versions had never been recorded. The two attempted to handle all of the instrumentation, Kirk being a rather accomplished guitarist in his own right, Shawn handling bass, some keys, and engineering the recordings (that's his "day gig"). Working as a duo was refreshing & nostalgic, as it was a return to the partnership in the very first days of the band, but it was clear that Mindworm music needed the input of more musicians. It was time to get back with Sean. Although Sean had formed other groups during the time off from Mindworm, he was ready to get back to the band and make some music. A bassist named Carlos Baez answered an ad the band put out and it turned out that he had met Kirk and Shawn before. Kirk had tried out for a band Carlos was in years ago and Carlos had tried out for Shawn's band, Hooray For Buzzy also. Carlos was very familiar with making progressive music and also had a lot of ideas of his own to contribute to the band. Carlos was also a good guitarist and keyboardist, and there were discussions about utilizing his abilities and having pieces with 2 guitarists or 2 keyboardists. The band rehearsed with this lineup for a few months, but Carlos's demanding work schedule at a television network began to conflict with the group and they soon parted ways. He did record with the band, though, and his tracks currently remain on several Mindworm recordings, like the great improv jam Pentatonic Lightning and the current version of Trolley. Kirk, Shawn, & Sean continue recording and playing as Mindworm.

Group Members Kirk, Shawn & Sean

Location Alpharetta, GA - USA

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