Creature with the Atom Brain

Being an opening act for a big name band can be rough. Being an opening act on your first tour of a foreign country can be a nerve-wracking experience, but the members of the band, Creature With The Atom Brain seem to make it look easy, as they casually hang out backstage. "Creature" hails from Belgium - Their name is derived from a song by songwriter Rory Erickson, and this month marks the band's first tour of the states supporting Alice In Chains. The band has an eclectic, psychedelic sound, and so far on the tour, they have started to connect with the fans of Alice In Chains.

"This tour has been great for us," lead vocalist Aldo Struyf states, "We have been able to play a ton of great places...we have played a lot of historic venues in the states. It has been a great experience."

When asked to comment on what the downside of being an opening act is, drummer Dave Schroyenmer replied with a sheepish grin, "The Alice In Chains fans are all guys! It's like a sausage fest out there, HA!"

Gender issues not withstanding, Creature With The Atom Brain seem to be enjoying their tour stateside and they are very excited about promoting their latest disc Transylvania, the band's second full length disc, and the first to be released in the US. When asked to explain why it took so long for the band to release music in America, Struyf shruged his shoulders and stated, "When we started out, we were just doing this for fun. We were recording E.P.s... we were having fun. We were all in other bands just playing around Belgium. After we recorded our first disc (I Am The Golden Gate Bridge) we started to get serious, and now we have a disc released here in the States. We are now ready to take our music all over the world"

When asked to describe their sound the band members got a bit serious, and drummer Dave Schroyenmer declared emphatically, "Well I will tell you what we are not. We are NOT stoner rock! We have gotten this label because of who we have associated with, namely Mark Lanegen... I don't even know what that is or what it means." Aldo Struyf elaborated, "We tend to have a mix of different influences. Our music reflects what we are into. We incorporate jazz, world music, Turkish music...it's a little bit of everything. Our last disc was a bit heavier than this latest one... I think we have matured a bit and we are really letting our influences show... That may sound cliché, but it's how we feel."

The band is not only proud of their eclectic sound, but they also don't mind name-checking the bands in their native Belgium who they respect. "We have a good music scene in Belgium," Aldo asserts, "Bands like Ugly Papas and The Hickey Underworld are great bands from Belgium...we have a small, strong eclectic scene."

Dave and Aldo have been doing this for quite sometime. When asked to elaborate on what keeps them going, Dave replied, "Hey man I can't do anything else! HA! I mean I am a drop-out, all I know is how to play the drums, and so far, I think I am doing pretty well for a drop-out! I think we are all doing pretty well."

With a new disc out, a US tour and some up coming shows including the SXSW festival, one would have to agree that things do indeed look good for Creature With The Atom Brain.