Shadyside: Old friends reunite for live show, new EP

Nov. 22—Shadyside, which was active locally from 1999 to 2005, is one hardcore band that refuses to die. The members formed a bond that has endured, going from teenage upstarts to adults with families and other concerns. One of the benefits of that connection is in the killer new EP, "Higher Plans," which will be released at Yellow Cab Tavern in Dayton on Saturday, Nov. 25.

"We've been toying with the idea of making some new stuff for years," said vocalist Michael Malarkey, a Los Angeles-based actor. "But it was always one of these things like, 'Will it ever happen?' 'If the stars align.' Everybody's got kids, jobs and has different schedules. The thing with me is I'm a sprinter. If I get my teeth into something, I'll be obsessed with it for an entire week, write the entire record and be done with it. They sent me some demo tracks and I (sat) on them for months. There was just one week where I got into it and started writing. I wrote the whole record and we set up a time to record it in Dayton."

Shadyside, which also features area residents Charles "Chip" Heck (guitar, vocals), Wendell Hensley (guitar, vocals), Adrian Grant (keyboards, guitar), Vincent-Ryan Arceo (bass) and David Brandenburg (drums), recorded the material with Patrick Himes at Reel Love Recording Company in Dayton in November 2021. According to Heck, they first discussed this EP in 2017.

"Michael was in town," Heck said. "Right before New Year's that year he invited us out to his parents' house in Yellow Springs. We started talking about recording some new music. We were all having such a good time, so we were immediately open to it. We started doing stuff again in 2018. It stalled for about a year and then we picked it up again in 2019. Then, flash-forward to the pandemic. We had demoed a group of songs, so we sent them to Michael."

Pandemic project

Malarkey, who grew up in Yellow Springs, was the troublemaking Enzo for 72 episodes on the CW's "The Vampire Diaries" from 2013 to 2017. The native of Beirut, Lebanon had a recurring role on "Project Blue Book" in 2019 and 2020 and a five-episode arc on "Big Sky" in 2021. Earlier this year he appeared as tough guy Seamus O'Meara on three episodes of "Law & Order: Organized Crime."

The new Shadyside instrumental tracks arrived at a time when Malarkey was at home due to the pandemic. He was in a creative groove and was looking for a break from working on his own solo material. He not only wrote lyrics for the five Shadyside songs and recorded his vocals, but he also recorded the five-song EP, "Last Days of a Dying World," with doom metal band Burial Clouds. It was released in May.

"I've got two kids, they are 9 and 4," Malarkey said. "A few years ago, it became very hard to write by myself in the garage, especially over COVID with my kids home all the time. It felt selfish disappearing to just make music while my wife was having to do everything. I reached out to a bunch of different people. I was on the hunt for projects I could work on where I wasn't having to write all the music as well like I do with my solo stuff. I wanted to be able to jump in and lay down some lyrics and vocals and feel like I'm actually accomplishing something quicker than I was able to with my solo stuff over COVID."

Watch the music video for Shadyside's "When the Fear Hits":

A fresh approach

There were times the recording project seemed destined to fall apart.

"We made a pact to do it again and then it fizzled," Heck said. "Michael had the demos for a while, so I thought he had maybe lost interest in the stuff we'd done. Then out of the blue one day, he surprised us by sending us demos of him singing over these songs. I was floored. This was the summer of 2020 and it was magic. So many bands and artists say a lot of stuff was galvanized during the pandemic. This EP getting finished is a direct result of that."

The lockdown period also allowed the members of Shadyside to update the band's sound.

"I've been wanting to do this for a while but if we were going to do a new Shadyside record, I wanted to reinvent ourselves slightly," Malarkey said. "With the old Shadyside, I was still learning to sing around then. It was very much about screaming and then singing. That kind of dichotomy of the early 2000s emo, hardcore and metal influx. I wanted to approach the new stuff in a more direct, more punk way I suppose. That's more where my heart was at.

"I wanted it to be more direct, something more rabblerousing," Malarkey continued. "I wanted to get the kids excited and empowered. The whole record is about fear and overcoming that, I suppose. I mean, that sells it short. Also, just having kids. In a way, it's a love letter to the kids, man. Like, 'It's all going to be all right. Keep your head up and keep fighting for the truth.' That's partially what it's about too."

Unbreakable bond

Shadyside reunited for local shows in November 2014 and June 2022 and this release show will certainly not be the last.

"We've all maintained pretty tight friendships, so it's only natural when it comes back around," Heck said. "We get to play together again and its super fun. We've kept in close contact and maintained the friendships. We've all been tight the whole time, but these connections tend to deepen as you get older. Obviously, you've been around longer but you appreciate it a little bit more."

Contact this contributing writer at 937-287-6139 or donthrasher100@gmail.com.

HOW TO GO

Who: Shadyside with Abertooth Lincoln and Moontemple

Where: Yellow Cab, 700 E. Fourth St., Dayton

When: 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 25; cover starts at 8 p.m.

Cost: $12 in advance, $15 day of show

More info: 937-424-3870 or www.yellowcabtavern.com