House of Freaks was a two-man band formed in Richmond, Virginia in the mid-1980s. Bryan Harvey played guitar and sang, and

Johnny Hott Johnny Hott was the drummer for the House of Freaks, a musical duo with singer/guitarist Bryan Harvey. He was also one of three drummers for the band Cracker. He has also played drums for indie supergroup Gutterball and drums and keyboards fo ...

played percussion. The band managed to achieve a remarkably full sound, mostly because of Hott's inventive drumming and Harvey's confident vocals and knack of playing bass lines on his guitar (cribbed from his many years as a bass player) while simultaneously playing a melody. The Freaks' sound was a combination of folk and rock, and drew heavily from the blues and primitive

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

music. Their lyrics focused on race, religion, and life in the South, although Harvey was also adept at writing about more personal topics (the lack of success of independent bands, his sex life and meeting the woman who would become his wife on "I Got Happy") using rich metaphors from these former topics, so that many of their songs could be interpreted in two entirely different ways. Bryan's obsession with

Southern Gothic Southern Gothic is an artistic subgenre of fiction, country music, film and television that are heavily influenced by Gothic elements and the American South. Common themes of Southern Gothic include storytelling of deeply flawed, disturbing or ...

issues influenced his song writing. These sentiments can be heard in such songs as "Bottom of the Ocean" and "My Backyard" from the album ''Monkey on a Chain Gang;'' "White Folk's Blood," "Family Tree," and "Big Houses" from the album ''Tantilla;'' and he cribbed the title of the song "A Good Man" from the album ''

Cakewalk The cakewalk was a dance developed from the "prize walks" (dance contests with a cake awarded as the prize) held in the mid-19th century, generally at get-togethers on Black slave plantations before and after emancipation in the Southern Uni ...

'' from

Flannery O'Connor Mary Flannery O'Connor (March 25, 1925August 3, 1964) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist. She wrote two novels and 31 short stories, as well as a number of reviews and commentaries. She was a Southern literature, Southe ...

Career

Harvey and Hott moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

for the release of the band's first album, ''Monkey on a Chain Gang'', which received considerable critical acclaim. However, unsatisfied with life in L.A., they moved back east, where they recorded their subsequent albums and faded from the public spotlight. On March 13, 1988, House of Freaks performed at

the Fillmore The Fillmore is a historic music venue in San Francisco, California. Built in 1912 and originally named the Majestic Hall, it became the Fillmore Auditorium in 1954. It is in Western Addition, on the edge of the Fillmore District and Upper Fillm ...

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

with

The 77s The 77s (alternatively spelled the Seventy Sevens, the 77's, or simply 77's) is an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass guitar, and Bruce Spencer on drums. History The group was “formed at a ch ...

and

The Alarm The Alarm are a Welsh rock band that formed in Rhyl, Wales, in 1981. Initially formed as a punk band, the Toilets, in 1977, under lead vocalist Mike Peters, the band soon embraced arena rock and included marked influences from Welsh languag ...

. Audience members included

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Fur ...

. The band had minor radio hits with singles "When the Hammer Came Down" and "Sun Gone Down" from ''Tantilla'' and "Rocking Chair" from ''Cakewalk''. After the band's breakup, Harvey and Hott joined a Paisley Underground supergroup called Gutterball, headed by

Steve Wynn Stephen Alan Wynn (''né'' Weinberg; born January 27, 1942) is an American real estate developer and art collector. He is known for his involvement in the American luxury casino and hotel industry. Early in his career he oversaw the construction ...

, formerly of Dream Syndicate and also featuring Stephen McCarthy of

The Long Ryders The Long Ryders are an American alternative country and Paisley Underground band, principally active between 1982 and 1987, who have periodically regrouped for brief reunions (2004, 2009, 2014, 2016). In 2019 they released a new studio album � ...

and Bob Rupe of The Silos. The group released two albums, ''Gutterball'' (1993) and ''Weasel'' (1995). Harvey co-wrote many songs on each. Hott later joined the band Cracker. Harvey has guested on a number of other artists' albums, including September 67's ''Lucky Shoe'', two albums by

Shannon Worrell Shannon Worrell is a singer-songwriter based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Known for a series of critically acclaimed albums in the 1990s culminating with an appearance (as September 67) on the Lilith Fair tour and for collaborations with fellow ...

(formerly of September 67), and Magnet's ''Shark Bait''. Both Harvey and Hott assisted

Mark Linkous Mark Linkous (September 9, 1962 – March 6, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter and musician, best known as leader of Sparklehorse. He was also known for his collaborations with such notable artists as Tom Waits, PJ Harvey, Daniel John ...

on the debut Sparklehorse record. Bryan Harvey played in a funk band, NRG Krysys, in Richmond, Virginia with Coby Batty of

The Fugs The Fugs are an American rock band formed in New York City in late 1964, by the poets Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg, with Ken Weaver on drums. Soon afterward, they were joined by Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber of The Holy Modal Rounders. Ku ...

. Johnny Hott has a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

combo with Stephen McCarthy. In an interview for his most recent band, NRG Krysys, Harvey addressed his initial disapproval for R&B and funk music when he was growing up saying it was music for "squares", and he claimed that his band played this type of music now because he discovered he had the talent. NRG Krysys even performed at the screening of Mel Stuart's documentary ''

Wattstax ''Wattstax'' was a benefit concert organized by Stax Records to commemorate the seventh anniversary of the 1965 riots in the African-American community of Watts, Los Angeles. The concert took place at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on August 20, ...

'' during a festival in Richmond. On New Year's Day, 2006, after a performance with his band NrG Krysys, Bryan Harvey, his wife Kathryn, and their daughters Stella and Ruby were found brutally murdered in the basement of their Richmond home. Their killers were convicted on August 17, 2006. One was sentenced to death and the other received life in prison. Media reports said about 1,400 people turned out for a memorial service, showing how well-regarded Harvey was in his community and among fellow musicians. In an obituary, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' noted that the House of Freaks aesthetic foreshadowed such later duos as the

White Stripes The White Stripes were an American rock duo from Detroit formed in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (songwriter, vocals, guitar, piano, and mandolin) and Meg White (drums and vocals). After releasing several singles and three albums wi ...

and

The Black Keys The Black Keys are an American rock duo formed in Akron, Ohio, in 2001. The group consists of Dan Auerbach (guitar, vocals) and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording music in basements and self-producing their ...

Discography

Albums

* '' Monkey on a Chain Gang'', 1987 * '' Tantilla'', 1989 * '' All My Friends'' EP, 1989 * ''

'', 1991 * '' Invisible Jewel'', 1994 ''Tantilla'' and ''Monkey on a Chain Gang'' were rereleased with numerous bonus tracks in limited editions by Rhino Records in 2004.

Singles

References

{{Authority control Rock music groups from Virginia Music of Richmond, Virginia Rock music duos

Career

Discography

Albums

Singles

See also

References