1992 award winner for Demo Search 92′ – 2nd Annual LA Music Award – Dave Robyn “Pretty Poison”
Shivertown Is No Grunge Band
By Rei Nishimoto Corsair Staff Writer
Shivertown is the name of a small town in the Catskill Mountains. The people there are known to live a long time. And like the town, the band is trying to live up to the same expectations. Lead vocalist and guitarist David Robyn explained the band’s name. “It came from a small town in the Catskill Mountains, where the people there are known to live about 125 years. The truth is that there is an oldtime mystique.” Shivertown came together when Robyn wanted to form a new band after being dissatisfied with his previous one. He went looking for musicians and found the members by taking them from their previous bands. Robyn described the overall sound as ” ‘Eric Clapton meets Tesla.’ There are no gimmicks and everyone in the band sings. The messages are real and all the songs are true. We are not the flavor of the month and we’re the farthest
thing from grunge.” The band is inspired by a wide range of influences. Robyn is influenced by singers such as Neil Diamond and Peter Gabriel, while guitarist Kevin Layland is influenced by Clapton and Eddie Van Halen. Robyn also likes other local bands such as Radio Free Europe and the Biloxis. A big part of the band’s sound is the keyboard playing of Stephan Curto, which is a major
part of its overall sound. Robyn praised Curto, calling him “an excellent musician. “Burning Candles” is an example of the band’s sound. Robyn explained the song. “It’s about a relationship I had and was totally wiped from it. I couldn’t eat or sleep. Every-
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May have had something to do with a band called precious death