The John Wilkes Kissing Booth Live Band from Long Beach, CA

The Long Beach-based John Wilkes Kissing Booth is the collaborative creation of lead crooner Derrick Brown, Jeff Numanville, guitar/Hammond organ, Tony Joe Neal, guitar, Jason Bosellatron, percussion/keyboards, and bassist Paul Smith. Spontaneous friendship and a thrown together song at a party inspired Brown and Numanville to form the band on Halloween night in 1998. With the additional talents of local musicians Neal, Bosellatron- and Smith the group quickly evolved a hybridized sound that defies classification. Neal introduced a fluid intensity to the guitar section while Smith's ability to fill sonic pockets and push The Booth in dramatic directions amazing. The band's emotive lyrics and compelling rhythms have since brought a unique sound to the Southern California music scene, a non-traditional take on rock 'n roll with a deft intellectual sensibility and mesmerizing melodic qualities capable of causing internal upheavals in the mind and soul. Their first effort- 'Royal Horse Artillery,' which Brown describes as 'a song about schrapnel, skin, and face down in the dirt affection-' set the mood for the band's current collection of hard-hitting, hypnotic ballads. Brown's deep, clear-toned vocals and story-driven lyrics are anchored by haunting musical compositions and the cohesive skills of the group as a whole. This past summer, an unresolved crush by Brown brought a flush of fresh blood and creative energy that propelled the band in a new direction. Brown's lyrics took a darker turn. Evocative poetic metaphors- 'kiss me hard like a man on death row...then I'll need no pardoning-' proved even more potent, while the music twisted into unexpected areas. Its sound diversified as influences ranging from Al Green to Echo and the Bunnymen crept in. The John Wilkes Kissing Booth has played to packed audiences around Southern California in venues ranging from Orange County's famous roadhouse, Linda's Doll Hut, to local bars and coffeehouses where Brown is known as a respected performance/slam poet, placing second at the 1998 National's in Austin, Texas. In addition to their upcoming single 'Here Come the Americans' plans are in the works to bring back the 'live show' with a multi-media experience incorporating movies and slide images projected onto the band. As summed up by Brown: 'We are just a bunch of friends with an idea to bring americans the rock they deserve, to sling the loud romance, to make the young girls cry.'