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Hard-rocking Killer Bee leaves a mark in US
By John Benson
For those who remember the 1992 film “Singles,” there’s a funny moment where Matt Dillon says his band, Citizen Dick, has a big record that just broke in Belgium.
For hard-rock act Killer Bee, the sad reality is that for the past two decades the Swedish-Canadian outfit, which toiled in obscurity stateside, truly had a big record in Belgium, as well as on the entire European continent.
“It’s pretty accurate,” said singer Brian Frank, calling from Melbourne, Fla. “In the ’90s, when we were going strong, it was all Europe. America really hasn’t caught on at all.”
From 1994 to 1998, the outfit released three decent-selling albums and scored a No. 1 Scandinavian hit with “Take Me Home.” This opened the door for the band to be popular on the festival scene, as well as garner opening slots for Oasis, R.E.M, Elton John, Rod Stewart, Page & Plant, Megadeth and Peter Frampton.
By the end of the decade, Killer Bee went on hiatus and didn’t reunite until 2011. Now the band has its sites set on America with a compilation album “Rock Another Day” featuring tracks from its 2012 album “Hell and Back Again” and 2013’s “Evolutionary Children.”
The goal is for “Rock Another Day” to open doors, which is exactly the reason why the band will be making its Youngstown debut tonight at the Royal Oaks.
“The whole tour is all-new audiences and new cities,” Frank said. “It’s great; it feels fantastic to do this. We figured there are a lot of places out there pushing the hard-rock and the rock ’n’ roll live scene, and you have to feed all of these markets, too.
“It’s not just about playing out there and trying to play the best places – you have to play all the best places that are pushing live music.”
The current tour, which also features Paul Chapman (UFO) filling in on lead guitar, finds Killer Bee playing new single “Joystick Warrior,” which will appear on the band’s next studio album due out later this year.
As for being a veteran group and still attempting to break in the States, Frank said at this point the band members just love to play music. There’s no real lofty goal of breaking big.
That said, considering Northeast Ohio’s love of rock radio, Killer Bee should be viewed as an unearthed gem that can offer fans a catalog of, well, killer tunes that fit right into their sweet spot.
“I hope it’s like when you bought your first record, like ‘Led Zeppelin IV,’ and then you went back and found ‘Led Zeppelin I, II and III,’” Frank said. “You learn the music that brought them to that point, and hopefully people who pick up the new album will go, ‘Wow, where did this come from?’ They’ll go back and explore and find out what’s there. I think there’s a lot to offer if you want to find it.”
He added, “It feels good when you’re playing out there and having the people rock. It’s always a good sign. When you’re up there playing, even if they don’t recognize the songs, they’re still in the groove.”