| | Thrall: | | Slaves on a mission | | by Sandee Rager | | MarsDust Rock Girl |
The middle class, the blue collared worker, the down-to-earth: that is the spirit of this in the moment, yin-yang band. They don't see themselves above anyone else; they keep it down to the same level as the people that face them as they play which has been the attitude of punk music since the beginning. Mike Hard, Scott Kodrik, Cliff Carinci, and Johnnie Johnson electrify the band Thrall. Thrall has been in effect since 1994. "I lose track man," Hard said and chuckled. Hard - Ypsilanti, Michigan, is vocals. Kodrik - Detroit, Michigan, plays guitar. Johnson -Detroit, Michigan, also plays guitar. Carinci - Detroit, Michigan, beats the drums. Kodrik once played for the band Head Over Hand. When they broke up, Kodrik was looking to put together another band. Knowing that Hard, former front man for the God Bullies was in the area, Kodrik put an ad in the newspaper looking for a singer for a "heavy fucking grunge band" The ad was specifically aimed at Hard. Two weeks later, he got a call from the man, and Thrall was a go.
Kodrik and Hard reclined back in their not-so-comfortable wooden chairs, lit and puffed one cigarette after another and comfortably swallowed glasses of ice cold beer on tap. Dressed in dark union shirts with emblems on the front shirt pockets, Kodrik sat reclined mostly, but Hard shifted his weight from recline position to edge of his seat several times leaning into the conversation with intense focus. "The name, Thrall, was chosen in connection of so much of what people are; that enthralled me, it was enthralling," Hard said, "Thrall stands for what we've become." "We are slaves," Kodrik added. "We're on a mission," Hard said slightly wide-eyed. "We're like the Spartacus of bands." Hard started talking about the past with the start of Thrall and stories about God Bullies and craziness that went on and Kodrik just laughed enjoying the animated site of his cohort. "I'm like the Rodney Dangerfield of rock-n-roll," Hard said. "Jello (Biafra) makes fun of it, but I stand behind it." Thrall started with Hard, Kodrik and Karen Neil. Along the way, they picked up musicians Kevan Hagen and Paul Thor. After a while, different lifestyles and a variety of other factors got in the way, things unraveled and Thrall called it quits. Kodrik went out to California to make a break in Hollywood movies. Having a background in special effects make-up and previously working on the classic B movie, Mosquito, (in which Hard had played the part of a victim), Kodrik plunged his hands in latex, plaster, blood, and everything else that makes Hollywood movies seep and sell. The journey put him on the sets of such films as Wolf, From Dusk Til Dawn, The Craft, Jurassic Park, and John Carpenter's Vampires, just to name a few. After several movies, the Hollywood scene got old and tiresome for Kodrik and he came back to Michigan, picking up where he left off with Thrall. "(I) Hated LA," Kodrik said. "People are fake." So he left. Just as Hard and Kodrik clinked half-full glasses to toast that sintiment, Carinci strolled in wearing similar attire to his cohorts."Long day at the office," Carinci said with a slight sigh. Carcini had once played drums with the band El Cabrone before becoming Thrall's drummer. Everyone in the band works full-time jobs. Hard owns a college book store called Iron City in Marquette, Michigan; Kodrik drives a book store van for Wayne County Community College; Carinci does brick masonry for the state, and Johnson is a driver for a furniture store. Hard has been married for 12 years and has three children ages nine, seven and one. "We now have the best possible combination of people we have ever had," Kodrik said. "It's like a family, the people we work with." There was an agreeance round the table to this. "The music they (other members) write is really deep," Hard added, "Kinda cool music, very much me." "I've never been more happy with a band," Carinci said. Thrall is with Indy label Alternative Tentacles now. They would like to get on a bigger label one-day, but are satisfied with where they are. They rehearse at least two nights a week at a studio in Redford, Michigan, and are working on a "fun video," Hard said. "To showcase our magical moments." Thrall is preparing for the Fourth Street Art Fair where 20 Detroit bands get together and perform free shows. This will happen in Hamtramck, Michigan in the third week in July. They also have a few tour dates planned in various cities. "It's hard fucking work touring," Hard testified. | 
| Sandee Rager lifts serious iron three times a week and can probably kick your ass if she weren't so gosh darn nice. She's only writing for us on the off chance we'll get her an interview with Henry Rollins - so she can get weight training tips from him. If you wanna write her (especially if you're Henry Rollins), just send an e-mail to the address below: rager@marsdust.20m.com | | 
