Dave Chamberlain

It hasn't been easy being Local H.

The local two-man band, which consists of main man (guitars, vocals, songwriting) Scott Lucas and drummer Brian St. Clair (who replaced original Local H drummer, Joe Daniels, in 1999), has ridden a roller-coaster ride of tangible success. The band started with a bang, securing a deal with Island Records, which released its first three records, starting in 1995 and ending with "Pack Up the Cats" in 1998. Though Local H had latched on to the alternative-rock outpouring in the mid-nineties, its brand of hard-rock, Midwestern grunge and aggressive songwriting peaked with "Pack Up the Cats," but it also coincided with Island Records' demise and itsconsolidation by Universal Music.

"Our third record came out the week that that happened," recalls Lucas. "It was tough because we made this really good record, and for the first time I felt like it was exactly what we wanted to do, but the support wasn't there because everybody was worried about losing their jobs. And I can't really blame anybody for that either--that's just human. It kind of sucked, but we were determined not to have that happen again."

Four years went by before Local H released another record, "Here Comes the Zoo," this time on Palm Pictures. But the results were, unfortunately, not much different. "The thing was," says Lucas, "we figured it wasn't meshed into this huge corporate structure. We thought it would be different, and it was, but that had its own problems. We were starting to feel like the same thing was going to happen--people were starting to get fired, we were hearing rumors that they were running out of money. And we were like, `oh my god, it's gonna happen again.' And I was like, I don't want to wait another four years to make another record, and go through all the bullshit again. So we're gonna get out of our deal, we're gonna make a record on our own time, and whoever wants to put it out can put it out."

The band got out of its Palm Pictures deal, which leads us to the present. Local H just released its first non-major-label record, the five-song "The No Fun," on local label Thick Records. It's the reverse of what most consider music ascendancy (from independent label to major label instead of vice versa), though Lucas never really intended to make a separate release of "The No Fun."

"They call it a stopgap," Lucas explains, "but we just put this out, and we weren't even gonna really put it out here in America--that wasn't really what we were thinking. I planned on of having some of these tracks for the next record, but Zak [Einstein, owner of Thick] has always showed interest in putting stuff out, so we were like, alright fine, fuck it."

Through it all, Lucas has shown a remarkable amount of resiliency, constantly touring and playing shows and always trying to hone his work and make it better. The band has played everything from stadium-sized concerts to one-off, free club performances (for example, Local H played this year's Delilah's party at South by Southwest), a transition that Lucas takes in stride. "The thing is," says Lucas, "even when we were on tour with Stone Temple Pilots or someone like that, people were like `do you like playing big places better?' But it's nice to do both. Small shows are great, because it's really in your face and you have to just bear down and do it." And the large shows? "They are just ridiculous."

Fortunately for Chicago, the trials and tribulations of Local H have never prompted Lucas and St. Clair/Daniels to uproot themselves (Lucas formed the band in Zion before moving to Chicago) and abandon the city for a location closer to the money. In fact, he's never even really considered it. "I fucking hate LA," he explains, "and I don't think I could afford to live in New York. And one of the things I really like about Chicago, and Seattle and Detroit, is that they're not based on the two poles of information. It's like the thing with Minneapolis in the eighties; you got a feeling for what else was going on in the country rather than just New York and LA."

It would have been easy, after the second major-label breakdown, for Lucas and Local H to just give up and call it quits. But that's never been part of the equation. "There are people who probably think that we should quit--and you're probably one of them-but I don't really care. I feel like I just have more to say, but I also feel like I'm the pathetic gambler who just wants to take another shot. But I'm not done, I want to make just one more record."

Lucas pauses for a moment before finishing. "But it's hard--it's hard to let go of what you love to do."

Local H plays a record-release show for "The No Fun," May 25 at the Double Door, 1572 North Milwaukee, (773)489-3160.

(2003-05-21)

Also by Dave Chamberlain

Tip of the Week
The Immortal Lee County Killers--the duo of Chetley Weise and J.R.R. Token--could be a cliché, given their blues-blooded punk-rock duet form, which so many other bands have recently adopted. But...
(2003-05-14)

All grown up
There's no rock 'n' roll in here, man, this van carries Adult., the married couple of Nicola Kuperis and Adam Lee Miller, who, like myriad others playing modernized hybrid electro music, have begun to break away from the world of club kids and hipster magazines.
(2003-05-14)

Raw Material
A trio composed of bassist Ajay Gosain, lead singer/guitarist Eric Amir Hemmat and drummer Steve Niemczak, Monkey Paw at one point had everything lined up.
(2003-05-14)

Music Tip of the Week
Tonight marks the last chance to be assaulted by Zeke, a quartet of West Coast metal-punk kids whose music picks up where the Dwarves' "Blood Guts and Pussy" left off.
(2003-05-07)

Marr's attack
(2003-05-07)

Raw Material
(2003-05-07)

Tip of the Week
(2003-04-30)

Raw Material
(2003-04-30)

Coalition force
(2003-04-22)

Raw Material
(2003-04-22)

Raw Material
(2003-04-15)

American idols
(2003-04-15)

about Newcitychicago | about Newcity magazine | advertising | privacy policy | FAQ | employment