The Enkindels:Can't Stop The

Liner notes:

by Scott Ritcher:
The first thing that comes to mind when I reflect back on the band is the first time I met Mark "The Snake" Brickey. The antics of the Snake are nearly as widely revered as they are misunderstood. I have decided to use this forum to recount a few of my experiences with the elusive, yet dangerous, Enkindels, to perhaps offer the uninitiated a feel for what makes the group tick.

Even if one is not familiar with this band's music, everyone, it seems, has heard tale of Enkindel (or "the Enkindels," if you prefer). Be it from reading the words of a reviewer who has delighted in the fruits of their progression over the years, or from a friend in Madison, Wisconsin, who has their own hellish version of the story which tells how the group came to be forever banned from the city. There are probably a dozen or so similar cities across the United States (Atlanta, Minneapolis, et cetera) who either didn't get the joke one hot summer night, or just weren't in the mood for the Enkindels' special brand of party.

However, I found the scene to be quite different the last weekend of May 1998 in the Enkindels' hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. I, along with about 1,200 of my closest friends, were crammed into Louisville's Thunderdome, for the first evening of a three-day event by the name of Initial Records Krazy Fest. The hotly-anticipated Enkindels were next to take the stage. Uncharacteristically, as compared with the previous acts of the evening, before they came out, the lights went down. The crowd was wild. The excitement was so thick you could taste it.

Then, suddenly, a low rumbling from the sound system consumes the room. The four Enkindels – sans-Snake – walk onto the stage and prepare their instruments. In an instant, it becomes apparent that the rumbling we're hearing is the opening notes of "Also Sprach Zarathustra" ...better known as "Elvis Presley's Intro." As the crowd of sweaty kids recognizes the tune, the magic and excitement careen wildly out of control. The drums fire into a tribal beat and the fanfare of horns beckons The Snake to the stage... dressed in a full, black, sequined stage costume as the King himself! The crowd cheers in insanity. He approaches the edge of the stage where he victoriously puts one foot up on the sound monitor, looks high into the balcony and - to the jubilation of his legions of fans - outstretches his arms to proudly display his gold lamé cape. As the capacity crowd roars in approval, the full scope of Mark Brickey's childhood dreams have become realized.

Like most rock'n'roll acts, there is so much more to the Enkindels than the admiration of the fans, the squeal of the guitar solos, and the electric personality of the frontman. However, there doesn't need to be. Rock'n'roll has always been about having a good time, and that's exactly the tradition the Enkindels set out preserve each night when they hit the stage. Just as many bands' famous last words are, "Let's talk about the political lyrics in this song," or perhaps, the more depressing, "This is a song our drummer wrote," the Enkindels imparted some wisdom to me which they learned years ago. That special something is that rock'n'roll has a rich history which must remembered by the continual perpetuation of a good time.

Rock'n'roll is a 24-hour party and The Enkindels are rock'n'roll. They are the dream. They live the fantasy. They are the embodiment of the church that preaches what they know. Rock'n'roll is a religion.

Track List

1. Turning Away St.Louis
2. Just Another Sellout
3. Blue Highways
4. Eva Luna
5. Nothing But A Good Time Version 2.0
6. Loose Screws
7. Days Of The New
8. Life Of A Kansas Strip Queen
9. Teen Schemes
10. December By Chance