Lucky Boys Confusion
(also known as LBC
) is a rock band from the Chicago suburbs in DuPage County. Their music is a mix of punk, ska, and hip hop. The band consists of bassist Jason Schultejann, drummer Ryan Fergus, vocalist Kaustubh (Stubhy) Pandav, guitarist/vocalist Adam Krier, and guitarist Joe Sell. Pandav - whose experiences growing up with recent immigrants to the U.S. are a popular theme of the band's lyrics - and Krier write the majority of the band's songs.
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LUCKY BOYS CONFUSION TICKETS
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History
Beginnings as an Indie Band
Lucky Boys Confusion formed in 1997 shortly after the breakups of Pandav and Fergus's band, Farmboy, and Krier and Sell's band, Spinning Jenny. After recruiting Schultejann on bass, the group quickly released an
EP,
What Gets Me High
. In late 1998, they released their first full length album,
Growing Out Of It
, under their self-owned label, Townstyle Records. The group toured around the Midwest and were known for their exciting live shows. The fan base worked hard at promoting the band, fostering a strong loyalty to the fans. The members of the
street team and fans of the group are known as the "420 Geeks". In 2000, the band released the
The Soapbox Spectacle
, featuring "Dumb Pop Song" (which had gained plenty of airplay on Chicago alternative rock station
Q101), a new version of "Fred Astaire", and five new songs. During this time, the band also recorded a video for the song "Dumb Pop Song."
Elektra Records & Mainstream Success
In 2000, the band was signed by
Elektra Records. They headed to
California in the fall of 2000 to begin recording their new album,
Throwing The Game
, which was released on
May 8,
2001. This album featured new versions of songs from their first two releases and several new songs, including a cover of
Jocelyn Enriquez's "
Do You Miss Me?." The band also released a video for the song "Bossman," featuring
Beenie Man. In 2008, "Bossman" was featured in a commercial for the gum
Extra.
Their second effort for
Elektra Records,
Commitment
, proved to be their most popular mainstream album. Michael Miguel Happoldt of
Sublime produced the album, much to the delight of the band (Sublime is one of their biggest influences). The album featured 15 new songs, and also shifted from
ska or
hip hop influences to pop rock influences. The band recorded a video for the song "Hey Driver," and the song was featured in the movies
Looney Tunes: Back in Action
,
Without a Paddle
,
New York Minute
, and the
video game MVP Baseball 2004
.
LBC has played a two-night set with various local bands in
Chicago in the week before New Year's at Chicago club the Metro every year since 2000. This annual gathering is known as "Songs From A Scene."
Dropped by Elektra & Hiatus
In 2004, the band was dropped by
Elektra Records. They band playfully referred to them as "Neglektra" and were happy to have a fresh start. In August 2005, the band independently released
The Red Tape Outtakes (Demos And Heartbreaks)
, a 12-song collection of unreleased tracks and outtakes.
The band released
How to Get Out Alive
on
June 13,
2006. It contained four new songs, as well as a cover of
Dramarama's "Anything, Anything."
On
September 20,
2006, the band announced via its
MySpace page that they were going on hiatus. Fans everywhere feared the band was over, but the following day LBC quashed these rumors by saying it was only a "short break" and that fans shouldn't worry about the future of the band. At their final show before the hiatus in
Iowa City,
Iowa, the band reassured fans that their annual "Songs From A Scene" concerts would go on in December at the Metro in Chicago after they returned to a sense of "normality" over the next few months.
On December 29, 2006, at the annual Songs From A Scene series, the band made available Live and Acoustic. Recorded at the Beat Kitchen in Chicago by local recording engineers Jay Zdyrski and Coleton Paskert on
June 21,
2006, it is the band's first
live album.
Side Projects
In late 2006, lead singer Kaustubh Pandav, along with Chicago DJ's JJ Flores and Steve Smooth, recorded a debut EP as a side project. The album became available on
March 6,
2007 in both CD and digital format. The side project, entitled Shock Stars, played their first live show at
Double Door, a prominent venue in Chicago's music scene.
In May 2007, Guitarist Adam Krier and bassist Jason Schultejann, together with new drummer Chris Smith, formed a side project known as American Taxi. Their first single "The Mistake" was launched on Memorial Day 2007 on their newly formed . American Taxi has since released an EP entitled
Runaway Songs
, containing "The Mistake" and five other tracks.
Closing Arguments
In December 2008, at their 8th annual Songs From A Scene shows at the Metro in Chicago, the band announced that they would be releasing a new album in 2009. It is the band's 3rd full-length
studio album, following 2003's
Commitment. On January 30, 2009, at
The Rave in
Milwaukee, Lucky Boys Confusion announced that they would hold an album release show for their upcoming album on Sunday,
May 24th,
2009.
The new album, entitled
Closing Arguments
, contains old demos and rare songs, as well as one new one, "This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us." It was released without warning to
iTunes,
Amazon MP3, and other digital retailers.
Closing Arguments
will be released physically on
June 23,
2009.
The new song, "This Town Ain't Big Enough For the Both of Us," is now on Lucky Boys Confusion's .
Discography
- Growing Out of It
(1998, Townstyle Records)
- The Soapbox Spectacle EP
(2000, Townstyle Records)
- Throwing the Game
(2001, Elektra Records)
- Commitment
(2003, Elektra Records)
- The Red Tape Outtakes (Demos And Heartbreaks)
(2005, Townstyle Records)
- How to Get Out Alive EP
(2006, Townstyle Records)
- Live and Acoustic (Recorded at the Beat Kitchen)
(2007, Townstyle Records)
- Closing Arguments
(2009, Townstyle Records)
Members
- Kaustubh Pandav - lead vocals
- Adam Krier - guitar, keys, vocals, harmonica
- Joe Sell - guitar
- Jason Schultejann - bass
- Ryan Fergus - drums