Beef Jerk’s Cover Story: March 28, 2002

Youth Bands: Underground but not Buried

Not all kids are star athletes. There are the others, too. The ones who may not be as visible to the general public. The talented artists, musicians, writers, performers, and everything else in between, or out of the box.

This week we had the opportunity to get a glimpse into the life and time, the trials and tribulations of a kid band. We wanted to know all the things we don’t know much about. What’s it like being in a young band? Where do you practice? Where do you play? Is this your dream or are you just passing time, staying out of trouble? How many of you are there out there? And finally, what could our community do to make life better for you, to help elevate – heck, to even acknowledge – your talent and dreams?

Exactly how many Jonny Langs or Shannon Curfmans are there to yet be discovered, we wonder? How many young artists and musicians – band members – could grow and blossom beyond expectation were we to simply find out who they are, how many of them there are, and what their wants and needs are?

We introduce you to the Beef Jerk’s, a teen band in Moorhead that’s just beginning to come into its own. They were willing to answer all our questions, to give us a look inside their world, which too often begins and ends in the basement of one of the members.

The Beef Jerk’s rehearse and play in the basement of a residence in north Moorhead. Members of the band are Gavin Rehder, 17, (lead guitar, vocals), Billy Delaney (almost 17!) on drums, Pat Self, 15, lead guitar, and Matthew Snare, 16 on bass. They are all students in Moorhead High School.

Gavin and Billy started the group three years ago, first calling themselves Gwunk. One of their friends joining them in music was killed in a car accident. Pat and Matt joined the group since then. It hasn’t been the easiest journey, but it has led from one basement in one home to another.

The Beef Jerk’s had their first big show about a year ago at All Star Bowl in Moorhead. They’ve played in battles of the bands, too, and in other people’s homes.

Though you may not have heard of them before now, you may some day. These young musicians are serious, dedicated, and aspire for greatness.

Finding a place to rehearse and play is a huge challenge to young bands like the Beef Jerk’s.

“Most bands like us rehearse in each other’s houses, or like say the parents leave and we get the bands together, or else the parents can be there if they don’t have a problem with it,” Matt said. “Right now we’re practicing in Pat’s basement. It’s really small, Just enough for us to stand around and work on our music. We just got little practice amps.”

“You definitely have to have a place to practice,” Pat, whose basement they now use, said. “If you don’t, you’re pretty much going to crumble. And you have to find places to play. You need to make sure people are willing to listen.”

His advice? Create a space for bands to rehearse and play “in an area where it’s not going to hurt anyone else’s family, because I wouldn’t want to put Bill or Matt’s family through the same thing that mine goes through. An area that’s soundproof.”

Billy described such a concept as a dream come true, but acknowledges there has not been such visible support for music and bands like theirs.

“Here they are definitely underground. There are a few bands that most of the community knows about, but that’s also just because they maybe know people and they can play whenever they want, or they have a show every week because they have the money to set it up. You know money is also a big factor,” Billy said, going on to describe what things could be like in an ideal world.

“Just an area where there was a show going on at least one to two times a week and, if you’re in a band, there’s equal opportunity to play,” he said. “And each band should get paid fairly, unless it is like for a nonprofit. I guess just a place where there are shows going on all the time and any band can play, no matter what style of music.”

There is a definite need for more all ages shows, he added. “A lot of bands will draw a 16-18 year old crowd and the people who go to those bars are obviously going to be 21 and older, so they might not like some of the music, so they’re just going to get a smaller crowd. We’ve never played in a bar. But if it was a 21 and older show we’d really have to think about if we wanted to play. I think we’d be real picky, I guess.”

Though Billy might be considered the backbone of the Beef Jerk’s, Gavin is the group’s front man and its voice.

“I would say more places to play, make it easier for us to play somewhere so we can show what we can do and that way we can get feedback from other people. The way it is now it’s tough to find places to play,” Gavin said. “Find a venue that we can always go to. And not a bar, I hate bars. I have never been to one and I know I can’t be so I hate it because it’s not all ages. There are so many shows that are 21 and older, but it makes me feel mad because half the crowd is usually younger kids. Bands come in from bigger labels and half their crowd is kids and when they play in a bar it’s only drunk people, or people drinking, that can watch them.”

The Beef Jerk’s, despite their name, are really nice guys. They are respectful and articulate. Their music is what Matt describes as surf punk. “It’s got a little punk to it and there’s a little bit of surf music. Most people label music, as when they hear punk, it’s all hard and screaming. Ours is like that with a more mellow beat.”

According to Matt, there must be at least 100 youth bands in the community. “I know about five in my school that I haven’t heard of but I see flyers, and I know people who are in bands, about 25 in Moorhead Senior High School and Shanley. (Then) There’s West Fargo Schools, North Fargo, Fargo South,” he said. “If you’re estimating there’s 10-15 bands in each school, that would be a lot.”

Matt said it doesn’t seem like anybody is trying too hard to help young bands and musicians reach their fullest potential, except maybe the people who are actually playing, the people who want to hear, and their families.

“If more people heard us, they’d actually want to come,” he said, adding that even some adults like their style of music. “Others, if they don’t like it they at least get the kids into it, keep the kids away from other stuff they shouldn’t be doing.”

The Beef Jerk’s only play original music. Gavin writes most of it. Pat writes the instrumentals. Matt and Billy have written some, also. They have at least 17 songs of their own. They don’t do covers. And they are probably a lot like other youth bands up and down the valley.

“I’m sure there is lots of talent, it’s just untapped. I’m sure there’s tons,” Billy explained. “If they don’t have the money, they just can’t do it. If they aren’t inspired enough, they may just have an idea but they never get the boost they need.”

Gavin said that just being able to play a show once a week would be a huge boost. “It’s just the ability to create something. You want to put something down, not only in words but also through sounds, and be able to get your point across, just be able to express yourself more than through words,” he said. “Music has a certain quality you can’t get any other way.”

As to how many other youth there are like him, Gavin’s best bet was hundreds. “I’m sure there’s quite a few. There are a lot of people that are really good.”

Pat says music, for him, is an excellent form of creative expression, and that as a teenager he has a lot of strong emotions to vent. He estimates there are at least 10-15 bands with musicians like him in each of the local schools.

“The thing is it’s such a scene that even the people in it wouldn’t exactly know how many bands there are like us,” he said. “More and more pop up. At the shows we’ve played there’s bands we’ve never heard of before. So I take it there’s quite a few.”

Though Pat’s first public performance was a year ago, it changed his life forever. “I was pretty nervous. It’s pretty hard to show what you’ve done creatively to other people, maybe because you fear criticism, but it went just fine. I felt like I could do it for the rest of my life. Essentially, that would be my dream job. I would really love that.”