Sure, Foot Patrol is into feet. But once you listen beyond the foot fetishes, the group lays down some of funkiest grooves in town, bending Prince-like sex appeal against samples and fervent beats. The eclectic vision of Hung Nguyen and TJ Wade, Foot Patrol’s songs are both hilarious and swaggeringly smooth, rapping out toe odes that will, well, have your feet moving. The group is following up last year’s album Smellabration with a slew of planned projects for 2008, including the Bill Callahan narrated funk opera Toah’s Ark: the Covenant, and you can see the Patrol live this Saturday, June 28, at the Tiniest Bar in Texas (817 W. 5th St).
Profile: Foot Patrol
Year Formed:
2006
Members/Instruments played:
TJ Wade: Vocals, Keyboards, Blond Girl, Foot Lover
Hung Nguyen: Bass
Austin Schell: Guitar
Judge Jeffrey Hoskins: Drums, Gavels
Shoe Horns: Nick Smith-trombone, Rick Redman-trumpet, Kerim Peirce-tenor sax
Toe Deputy Dance Squad: Mari Akita and her Candy
Former Bands/Side Projects:
Limbs Are Absent, Gook, Sugartoes the Chinaman, Terroristic, MC Terroristic, Society Syncopators, Invincible Czars, Futants, Blau, Nice Strong Arm, Flying Saucers, Cash Amerika
Albums:
Toetry In Motion: 2006, no label
Foot Worship Queens EP: 2007, no label
Smellabration: 2007, no label
No Small Feat: 2008, no label, upcoming
Toah’s Ark: the Covenant: 2008, no label, upcoming
A Day in the Life of Chrissie EP: 2008, no label, upcoming
Influences:
Prince, Roger Troutman, the Time, Bootsy Collins, Les Claypool, Zeni Geva, Ruins, Fred Frith, the Residents, Brian Eno, Aksak Maboul, Fela Kuti, Miles Davis, Slim and Slam, Stuff Smith, Spike Jones, Thinkin Fellers Union Local 282, Sleepy Time Gorilla Museum, Kool Keith, James Brown
Strangest comment or comparison ever made about your music:
Here’s a quote from a review of our show: “The appeal is not unlike local hip hop artist and rape fetishist Black Nasty’s: when submerged in a predominately self-conscious scene, what better way to refuse it than to not acknowledge your own refusal?”
Favorite local bands:
Invincible Czars, Muppletone, Pong, Obnosticon, Crapulence, Jazzus Lizard, Lick Lick, Rabbit Fist, Devil Bat, Cat Scientist, the Horsies, Ron Titter Band, Bill Callahan
Favorite local venue:
Scoot Inn
Upcoming shows scheduled:
June 28 at Tiniest Bar
July 6 at Rollergirls game
July 19 at Scoot Inn with the Horsies
August 9 in Houston with Pong
September ? Prince Tribute Night
Some of your favorite albums from the past year:
Efterklang Tour EP, Invincible Czars: Nutcracker Suite, Extra Golden: Hera Ma Nono, Bill Callahan: Woke on a Whaleheart
Ideal band (past or present) to open for on a national tour:
Prince or Morris Day and the Time
Austin Sound questions:
Is there a hit song out there that is really about foot fetish, but we never knew it?
If you ask TJ, he would say every love song out there is really a foot fetish song. How about “These Boots Are Made for Walking”? Nelly’s “Air Force Ones”
What is Toah’s Ark: The Covenant about? And will there be any live performances of the opera?
The Covenant is a funk opera concept album regarding a character we have on Toetry In Motion. Toah is the unknown cousin of Noah who grew up in the foothills of Archentina. He was the town police chief who discovered that funk music made people less violent and therefore less criminal. He started a band called Foot Patrol. It was a success until Big Foot comes along and threatens the whole village with a tremedous flood. Big Foot is a reference to Keisha Cole, the successful R&B singer, whom TJ worked with a few years back. She was a hater. Anyways to make a long story short, the big Flood turns into the big Mud, as in a big muddy dance party at the climax. Bill Callahan will be the voice of God, sort of.
Yes, we hope to one day put together a live performance of it. We’re in talks with the Spank Dance Company.
Song Introduction:
Trample Me is neither a love song nor a romp grinder. It is simply about one man’s desire to try something new.
Sound Off:
Folks, don’t take the foot fetish thing too seriously. We’re just here to have fun. Isn’t it about time? Yes, TJ does love feet, and it’s not a joke. But we love making jokes about it. In this day and age, we gotta laugh to survive the craziness. DMSF- Dance, Music, Sex, Foot Dance. That’s our motto. Seriously.
Mp3s
Trample Me Intro
Trample Me
Website:
Myspace
