Trim

Trim was a band that rocked, it fits and starts, from late 1996 through late 1999. Sue used to term our sound "Porn Rock" while I refered to it as "Kick Out the Jams". Simple songs played fast--the punk ethos was very much at work. I was asked to join because their main criteria for a guitarist was that it be someone they liked--so I went out and bought my first guitar and tried to figure out how to play. Trim was a pretty volatile band, periodically imploding and going on hiatus and then reemerging reconfigured. Likewise, the stage shows could be pretty chaotic, depending on which member had drunk too much whiskey or smoked too much weed. But when things cooked--whoosh, it made it all worthwhile.

Members:

Line-up #1

• Sue Bailey bass, vox
• Douglas Maxson guitar, vox
• Debbie Barber drums
• Khriss Urban keyboards, assorted noisemakers, vox

This original configuration went by the name of Fur-Fur (or Furfur, a gross little skin fungus) but never got beyond practice and a basement party or two at the old Bailey place.

Line-up #2

• Sue Bailey bass, vox
• Douglas Maxson guitar, vox
• Khriss Urban keyboards, assorted noisemakers, vox
• Brett Holsclaw guitar
• Dean Beatty drums, vox on "Ham Hock"

This is the band that played the Sugar Doe and Butchertown Pub.

Line-up #3

• Sue Bailey bass, vox
• Douglas Maxson guitar, vox
• Khriss Urban keyboards, assorted noisemakers, vox
• James Turner guitar, vox on "Sewer"
• Brett Holsclaw drums, vox on "Plague"

The final tuning, so to speak. Played the Mercury Paw, Sparks, Toy Tiger . . . continuing the tradition that James Turner noted: "Every place Trim starts playing closes." This is the line-up that recorded the Trim album. Khriss was often away in this period. A frequent guest star worth the original inclusion:

• James Levan bass, vox

Jimmy first did vocals on a couple covers, then began singing some of the originals as well, and by the end of his stint played bass on several songs so Sue could wail unimpeded. He'd been like a BMX god in his time, so the full 6 line-up had a pretty boisterous set at the Paw when the X-Games Trials were in town. I remember being so soaked in beer spray that I began worrying about electrocution. Then some really drunk dude jumped onstage with a full tank and unzipped. I was really glad when he decided to turn and piss all over the audience, not us. 'Cause otherwise I would've had to unstrap and beat him with my guitar, and then all his friends would've had to jump me, and that would've been a no-win situation all around!

Recordings:

• The Trim Album--a 9-song session recorded 5/99 on 8-track 1/2" reel by John Cook down at the Rocket House. This was basically recorded live in usually one take, with no overdubbing but the vocals. Awesome, but never mixed.
• Holsclaw put together several cassette packagings, including the infamous 3 1/2-song "release". These things were based on live recordings or practice Tascams with some closet overdubbing and they sure sound like it.