Topics: International Speakers Bureau, Inc. |
 Fee Range: Call For Quote (fee note) |
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 Biography: For Allister, who use music as a vehicle to escape work as well as cope with their problems, enjoying the ride is crucial. The seeds for the band were planted in 1995 by Rogner and guitarist Johnny [TK], classmates and jokesters who hooked up to play their high school talent show. The next year, they became a trio when bassist Skippy [TK] met Johnny [TK] at a University of Illinois math class. In 1997, they changed their name from Phineas Gage to Allister -- after Alasdair Gillis, the host of the zany Nickelodeon children's show "You Can't Do That on Television. By the end of that year, they were playing shows and in 1998 Drive Thru records released their first seven-inch "You Can't Do That on Vinyl." The next year, Allister released their full-length debut, Dead Ends and Girlfriends for a cost-effective $700. Catchy and fast-paced, the disc was laced with humor, and included a cover of the Backstreet Boys' "I Want it That Way." In 2002, Allister put out their second disc, Last Stop Suburbia, which featured tighter songs that mirrored their love for Screeching Weasel, Green Day and the Queers. The record sold 80,000 copies and Allister supported the disc on tours with Sum-41, Less Than Jake, the Starting Line and others. With Before the Blackout, Allister have paradoxically matured as artists and proven that energetic, enthusiastic rock is ageless. More importantly, they've illustrated how raging, confessional songs are the best way to treat depression and dependency since electric shock therapy. Or, as Rogner sings in "Alotta Never," "Was there a hint of honesty in anything you said to me? Yeah. I wrote it all down so I could scream it out loud." * In partnership with Agency for the Performing Arts |
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