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Hailing from the overwhelming
foliage of upstate New York, it was 1987 when brothers Brian
and Tommy Goss decided to take their musical interests one
step further than record collecting and tape trading. With
Brian on guitar and Tommy demonstrating his drum skills, a
band called The Warmjets saw the siblings as dueling musical
mentors. Michael Billera, who would eventually become known
as the "flame blower" in the band to come, fronted
the band and by 1988 The Warmjets had moved to NYC. It was
there that the band released the first 7" EP on Bob Mould's
then brand new S.O.L. Records before splitting temporarily
to explore other musical interests.
The brothers inevitably reunited in
1991 along with long time friend Tony Ricci to play bass.
The sound resembled nothing of its kind. Driven by a vast
array of influences from psychedelic ‘65, straight-up
garage rock, and funk to metal, punk and noise, the band hadn't
a tune that wasn't somehow obscure, dark, gripping, and catchy
while maintaining a pressing, heavyset edge, and with that
came the name DRIPPING GOSS. A title that's intriguing meaning
is a foreshadow of the band’s consuming vibe. The band's
first record answered to the name of Flake, a manifestation
of acid rock brilliance. Released on the bands' own BTG Records
(Brian & Tommy Goss), beefy, rock-fueled rhythms meshed
with controlling yet soothing vocal tracks inadvertently bred
a following the band hadn't anticipated in such a brief time.
Due to a lack of band urgency Tony was eventually booted from
the lineup and Dan Souza, a former pro go-cart racer and guitar
player originally hired as the band's roadie, was recruited
as the new Dripping Goss bassist enabling the band to complete
the tour.
Their return home saw a tighter, thicker, more potent, DG
eager to pelt out a fresh release. And with that came the
SHIFTER EP complete with it's newly tripnotic vocal edge.
The sound caught on to the underground tape-trading scene
instantly & and the band met with another regrouping.
This time Danny had shifted positions to his more appropriate
spot on guitar while Chuck Valle of Murphy's Law took on all
bass playing duties. Just as the band were gearing up to sign
a deal with Fred Feldman's Another Planet Records, tragedy
struck and Valle was viciously killed in California. Blowtorch
Consequence came and went, at least through the eyes of DRIPPING
GOSS. A minimalist effort to say the least, it was a mourning
album both in a literal sense and a foreshadowing sense. The
tunes were far more gripping, a bit more atmospheric. A bastard
breed of acid rock. The following tour featured a barrage
of guest bassists, one arrest and the unexpected resignation
of co-founder Tommy Goss. Now only a two-member band, Brian
and Danny took some time off to digest the year. By 1996 the
band was deleted from Another Planet's roster but decided
to keep the band rolling adding Curt Steyer on bass and Tobias
Ralph on drums. The lineup would unknowingly be their most
solid and once the New York underground "IndieCent Magazine"
started their own, Popsmart Records, DRIPPING GOSS was already
set to release the Gift of Demise EP. Raw, angry and explosive,
Gift of Demise was an instant rage.
In all their time off dedicated to band turmoil, Blowtorch
Consequence had become an underground buzz nation wide and
the DRIPPING GOSS east coast tour in support of the Gift...
EP was a success the band hadn't anticipated. Once the band
returned home to work on their next LP, they rented out their
own down town practice studio. It became their home away from
home, their bonding place, and a psychedelic sanctuary that
would inevitably fuel the cogent emotion behind their next
release. Blue Collar is an amalgam of emotion. a film strip
of the mind set of that room. "For me, to hear the record
and really listen to it, it smells like the room" remembers
Goss, "I mean, it's the room and that whole head."
Produced by Genya Ravan, whose efforts include leading 60's
act Ten Wheel Drive and producing The Dead Boys among others,
Blue Collar is the movie screenplay Goss has written in his
head. It's a concept through and through. Recorded in less
than a week, the album is virtually all live sporting an Ultra
sincere, organic appeal complimenting the intricate, personal
story lines behind it.
For DRIPPING GOSS, Blue Collar Black Future is the band's
most mature effort to date. It's here where Goss, the band's
lyrical mastermind, puts his heart on a plate. While the running
concept is fictional on the surface, key phrases and words
are hints at deeper meanings. The story touches on realities
of both personal and economical nature. From the racy, raging,
title track opener to the rough, and the rugged road song
vibe of "Body in my Car" to the trashy, sleaze feel
of "Mercenary Woman" and the angelic though eerie
flavor of "Save Your Prayers", Blue Collar Black
Future sees the journey of a man struggling with the realities
of inevitable death and the consequences of his past choices.
"The Evolver" takes on a Doors-esque feel bringing
the epic to its turning point while "Darkhorse Connection"
serves as the album's final conclusion. All inhibitions are
discarded yielding only the truths the character had been
seeking from the very beginning. It's heavy. It's soothing.
It's a record where anything goes.
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