HYBRID ICE is one of those old AOR/Pomprockbands that released two LPs in the 80s and after that we didn't hear anything from them, but a month ago ESCAPE MUSIC re-issued the band's debut album from 1982. The CD also featured two new songs, so in other words: HYBRID ICE is back! Time for me to do an interview with them, here's what the bandmembers had to tell me about the past, present and future of their legendary AOR/Pomprockband...

Please tell us about the beginning of your music careers?

Jeff Willoughby: I started playing very young. I think I was 13 or 14. I played in a band called The Whey with Rob Morse, (drums, Brigg), John Roberts, (guitar) and Libby Kough. Libby was a good guitar player and singer. I had to say that because she was my girlfriend at the time! She was probably better, musically speaking, at the time than the rest of us. Anyway, we played parties and YMCA dances. Then Libby left the group and we reformed and asked Galen to join. We renamed the band Stratus. We played around for a while, then Rob went away to school. And Galen called me and asked if i wanted to keep playing, which I did. So we went in search a drummer and others to form a new band.

Galen Foulke: Well, before Hybrid Ice (circa 1971), I was 17 years old and mostly played, practiced, and jammed with locals. One exception was "BRIGG". Jeff Willoughby (Hybrid Ice), myself, and a friend recorded this self-titled album (about 600 copies) in high school.

Robert Scott Richardson: Lead vocalist and drummer with "August". Nothing was recorded.

Rick Klinger: I met Rusty and Jeff at the age of about 13. We formed the beginnings of Hybrid Ice by age 15, so I really didn’t have time to do much aside from the high school band before that.

When did you actually start with HYBRID ICE?

Jeff: In 1969 we started the band that would eventually be called Hybrid Ice. I was an original member, as was Galen and Rick. Rick came from a band called The Outer Five. John Hartman (keyboards, guitar) was also a member of that group and joined us as well. Before we were Hybrid Ice, we called it Part Two for a brief period of time.

Galen: We started Hybrid Ice around 1972, but never really seriously until 1978.

Robert Scott: January 1, 1978

Rick: As I said, Rusty, Jeff and I formed the beginning of Hybrid Ice in 1969 along with some other high school buddies so I’ve been with the band since it’s inseption.

Could you tell me more about the beginning of the band?

Jeff: We wanted to get girls! No, seriously...there was a magical thing about doing something that people paid attention to. I mean, in school nobody outside of your group of friends would even look at you. But when you were on stage it was all different. They looked at you...differently. We were kids and there was the "need to be accepted thing" going on in our heads, I'm sure, if you want to get into the psychology of the whole thing. I also thought "Hey, look at The Beatles! I want to do that!" like millions of other kids.

Galen: Well, Jeff knew me and I knew Rick, and we all kind of knew Chris. We got together, but needed a keyboard player. Then along came Bob, who was really a drummer, but was willing to play keys, so he got the gig! VIOLA!

Robert Scott: I saw the band perform at a college in Williamsport, PA. I was impressed by the talent and production but I did not care for the songs they were playing with exception to Queens "Bohemian Rhapsody". They really nailed it.

Rick: I’m afraid I’ll have to go with the stock answer for this one. Several guys from high school sit around trying to solve the singular most important, burning question of life “How can we meet some girls ?” LETS START A BAND !!! From that point on we learned songs by other artists and pretty much played any and every job we could find, whether there was money involved or not. You know, for the love of doing it.

Which bands influenced you?

Jeff: The Beatles, Cream, Grand Funk, CSN&Y, The Who, Hendrix, James Gang, Nazz, Led Zeppelin,Uriah Heep in the early years. Billy Joel and Sting (personally, I think they're excellent songwriters) Yes, Kansas, Foreigner, Tull, AC/DC, of course Boston, in the later years. Queensryche was an excellent band. BonJovi had all the elements going for him in his songs that we were looking for as a club, cover band. The bands that influenced me "directly" were, oddly enough, local groups who had already acheived a certain level of success. I mean, we would go see these groups at a high school dance and think "Wow, did you see their amps? When did he get that bass? Look at all the people here! I never knew he could sing like that!" And then you'd remember the songs they played, and if they played them "correctly," and go back to your car at the end of the dance. And you'd sit there for a few minutes quietly and think,"I can do that. I can do that BETTER than that!" They would be "targets" for our own improvement.

Galen: Beach Boys, Beatles, Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons, but mostly local bands, like: "The Other Side", "Sundae Train", or "Elf "(Ronnie Dio), who played covers of cool "European" or "underground" bands. So we had to play the same stuff!

Robert Scott: Yes, Genesis, King Crimson. Anything progressive.

Rick: Early on I’d have to say CREAM, LED ZEPPLIN, NAZZ, and YES. Later on STYX and KANSAS.

Please tell us everything about your wonderful debut?

Jeff: There's so much to tell. We were gaining a lot of popularity at the time (1982) playing live. We got to a point where we started to play originals out at the shows. Whenever you did that, whenever ANYBODY did that, the crowd would stop dancing. Because they weren't familiar with the song. After all, we were playing bars and our job was to keep them dancing. So, it would get a little frustrating. You never knew if the originals were working or not. Every once and a while some girls would come up and say that they liked this or that. We would experiment with changes and go back out and play them again. Eventually Galen suggested that we record like we did on an earlier album called Brigg. We said "Hey, why not?" but didn't really know what to expect. I mean we were popular and everything at the shows but we were playing (cover) songs that everyone knew. Would they really buy songs they didn't know or would we be stuck with a couple thousand LP's?

To make a LONG story short, we put it (the record) out and the stores couldn't keep it on the shelves! I think we were all a bit surprised. I mean we knew we had a good product and WE liked the material, but we really didn't how would the public was going to receive it. Anyway, it was a huge success for us. It established us as a REAL band. Oh, sure there were metal heads who said it didn't have teeth, but I guess you always get that kind of stuff. I used to just think, "hey I can play YOUR music, can you play and SING ours?" Very competitive in those days. After all, we were out to prove something. That we were as good as anybody else. As far as sales goes, I honestly don't know how many were sold. We kept re-ordering and they kept selling out.

Concerning airplay, everybody jumped on it. The album, eventually I think reached #5, Magdelene #2. And Magdelene was "most popular phones" for a long time on commercial radio as well as college stations. You have to remember, this was a time when DJ's controlled their own shows, their own programming for the most part. If they broke something that went BIG, it was a feather in their cap as well as the station's. There were no consultants or pre-programming like it is now. They WANTED to help you BECAUSE you were the "local boys." It didn't hurt matters any that the material was, in fact, good.

As far as stories behind the songs, I didn't write anything on the first album. I had a suggestion for a chord change or two here and there, but that was about the extent of it. I know how some of the songs had come to be but it's best that you ask the writers the inside stuff. I had songs in my head at the time, but they weren't going in the same direction as "the flow" of the album. So I "self-edited" myself. To this day, the songs I write are not in that vein. They're more "raw" for lack of a better word. I did write one though, (Call Girls) with Galen in 1990, that the band recorded and was to go on the third album. We played it out a lot and it was a popular tune but we never released it. "It's Only Love," from the second album is another tune that proved to be a regular on the set list. Galen and I co-wrote that one as well. To this day I think "Please Tell Maryann" would have made a great cover for REO Speedwagon or Boston. Think about Cronin singing that one.

Galen: Hmmm...That's a lot! I wrote most, well 8 of the 9 songs, over a period of a couple of years. I guess 1980-1984, mostly on an old piano (I still have it!) I bought from a roadie. I had just finished construction, along with the band, on a recording studio. However, ran out of cash and wound up recording at a better equipped 24 track studio in Northumberland, PA. I guess the best story is "Magdelene", a song whose verse I came up with after humming along with the sound my tires made on an old steel river bridge. It went on to win a couple of different "Rock to Riches" awards sponsored by some beer company. This led to all kinds of airplay (I think it charted at #3!). Also, 98Rock out of Baltimore included it on their homegrown album. Next, it placed high honorable mention in the American Song Festival (circa 1984) then went on to be covered by my all time heroes, "BOSTON". Pretty Cool! I don't remember a lot about recording the album as it went pretty fast due to a cool producer (John Palumbo of Crack the Sky). However, mixing was some kind of horror story. The first mix being "rejected" by Master Disk and with me in the middle of several different opinions, I decided to remix it myself, with a little "help". It came out OK, I guess.

Robert Scott: The album was recorded at a time when having a record was a big deal. We had just won the York Fair's "Battle of the Bands" and the radio stations jumped all over us. Magdelene went to #1 on their play list. I remember the day that Galen Foulke came into our studio and played it for us on the piano. It needed nothing. It was already done. All we needed to do was record it. The only song I wrote on the record was "Castle Walls". The lyrics to the song originally told a story of winning the hand of a princess with an archery contest. Our producer, John Palumbo made me rewrite them. I sat in a Winabago and wrote them in about an hour. I don't know what it means but some people have expressed their pleasure with the tune. John had asked if I could sing any of the other tunes but they were out of my vocal range. We couldn't get Chris to sound angry or hurt. For the song "Wounded", John made him run around the block. We did not realize that it would take him about a half of an hour to do so. He finally showed up out of breath and could not sing. We let him rest. John said, "Let’s fuck him up." So he gave him a bottle of scotch. Chris sang that song smashed.

Rick: At the time we released our debut no “bar bands” had done that type of thing. The only people with albums for sale were “signed artists” so, what I remember most about the project was having to do everything ourselves. We had to find a local studio that would allow us to record. We had to call radio stations and send out our promo copies. We had to set up consignment deals with record stores because we didn’t have a major label deal or distribution. But we worked hard and it paid off.

What happened after the release of your debut?

Jeff: Everything just exploded! I had to get an unlisted phone number!

Galen: Lots of gigs, we were local stars.

Robert Scott: The album sold well and opened doors for us. We thought that this would be our break. It is unfortunate that a major record company never picked us up. There was so much talent in this band. All we needed was someone to kick us inthe ass and show us the ropes.

Rick: We followed the airplay around and played to packed clubs.

The follow-up sounded different (actually I even think it's your best album), what changed the sound (production, influence of other bands)?

Jeff: We hired a producer, Bill Grabowski, who had lived with Jon BonJovi at some point in time in New York. In pre- production, Bill structured everything to be "fomulated." This section here, that section there. He was going for the "hit formula." Eventually we parted company in the middle of the project. So Bill was gone and we finished the record ourselves. As far as my contribution goes toward the production, I didn't sit behind the console like Galen did. But Rick and I had been playing together for a long time. And I was getting into "grooves," as opposed to freeform, melodic, "hey that's a cool run" kind of playing. We had been playing out a lot and we knew what worked on the dance floor. Rick and I laid down our tracks in like, a day. Aced a couple of takes, you know, one or two takes and it was done.

Production..hmmm...I specifically remember suggesting the rhythmic change in the middle of "Fool Me Twice" (the straight quarter note kick) and the half note bass lays in the chorus of "It's Only Love." Bill was there for this, I think. I also remember suggesting that we "go classical" in the middle section of "I Won't Be Far Away." I was (and am) a big fan of classical music and Bill just sat down at the piano and fooled around with a part until we latched onto what is there now. We added "Secret Dreams" because he was a co-writer on the song and felt we could improve on the BonJovi version. I didn't add much in the way of production to the rest of the album
other than my bass lines or an occasional suggestion for a harmony.

Galen: Well, a lot of time went by (6 years?). My writing was sporadic, trying to play as many gigs as possible. I felt the first album should have been exploited, due to its success, into a national deal. But "management" or a lack of it failed miserably. A second record was necessary to remain "local heroes". I got talked into recording drums in Philadelphia at the "Warehouse" studio. This led to an unsuccessful relationship with a producer. All totally unnecessary. As for sound, Tom (Sholz) gave me some Rockman gear, so I just used that pretty much, and "Lexicon Digital Reverb" & Aphex. I also mixed this and mastered at Master Disk.

Robert Scott: The album does sound better but I don't believe it captured what Hybrid Ice was all about. We never caught on record what we could do live. For an album titled "No Rules", our producer, Bill Grabowski, made us follow every rule in the book. The songs sound stale to me. I can't listen to it.

Rick: I think it was just the natural progression from first effort to what we felt people would perceive as good songs.

Tell us all about that second and final release.

Jeff: Well, first of all, I wouldn't call it a final release. Even though the band isn't playing together anymore doesn't mean we can't work together in the studio. I mean look at Steeley Dan. We've all been doing things on our own and we do have a lot of songs that we worked together on that were never "finalized" for one reason or another. So I don't rule out the possibility of putting something together as Hybrid Ice.

Galen: In came some L.A. management, but to no avail, we were still band and record label.

Robert Scott: It is very hard to repeat success. We did not have a "Magdelene" on the record. Radio did not push it like the previous album and there was too large of a gap between records. (Six years)

Rick: Our fans couldn’t wait for a follow up release. We played all the time so it was hard to find time for pre-production and recording.

Did you play live and/or toured with the band back then?

Jeff: Yes, I was in the band until July 31, 1996.

Galen: Yup.

Robert Scott: Yes. When you came to see a Hybrid Ice show it was big. Everything was big. Huge production with killer sound. Women everywhere. Ah the women.

Rick: The touring never stopped.

What happened after the release of the second album?

Jeff: Well, we still had our loyal fanbase. Even though it had been six years since the first release, they stayed by us. Mainly, because we were in their face every week performing. The best fans in the WORLD are Hybrid Ice fans, by the way. We got mail from everybody, everywhere. I remember one outdoor show. We, of course, had a covered stage. But the audience was exposed to the elements. Well, it started to rain...and rain harder...and harder. It was literally a torrential downpour. Water running everywhere. We sat in the dressing room thinking everybody left. I mean this was in the middle of town. They could have easily just jumped in their cars or went home. We walked out on stage, and everybody WAS JUST STANDING THERE WAITING FOR US! NOBODY LEFT! Galen walks up to the mic and, referring to all the water, jokingly says, "Gee, this looks like a job for The Sharks (another local band)" or words to that effect. And some guy yells out," F*** those guys!

We came to see YOU!" I mean, God, that's loyalty. If I remember correctly, it was a free show, the town council paid us. So they didn't even stay to "get their money's worth"! There were other times when we would get to a club for a soundcheck at like 7:00 or 7:30 and everybody would lined up around the building, three abreast, waiting to get in. If they didn't get there that early, they wouldn't get a seat. Or standing room for that matter. After the club opened and everything filled up, the club owners would put a "hold" on the door. That is, they wouldn't, read that; COULDN'T, let anyone else in until someone left.

We got airplay, sold records, played all over the place and then the music scene changed. A lot of people were getting away from the vocals/keyboard melodic style and getting into Guns'n'Roses, Great White and things of that sort. Don't get me wrong, I think G&R were cool for what they did. I mean, I liken them to Grand Funk Railroad when they hit the scene it 1967 or was it '68? As far as a "new" (actually) different sound. People just jump all over it. It's all a matter of timing. The Beatles were the same way. They released was it "Please, Please Me" or "Love Me Do" in the States and whichever it was didn't do anything at first. Then something happens. The time is right. Then people just eat it up and it becomes a monster.

And bands like ours, at least in the States, got eat up by the monster. Actually, it's not the songs, necessarily, in most cases (not all cases, of course) that turn things around. It's the production. The sound. G&R and bands like that had some really cool songs. Very melodic. And to prove my point; take "Sweet Child 'O Mine" for example. Have the bass play root eight notes, the kick play halfs, make the singer sing without distorting his vocals, add harmonies, overlay some keys, chunk the guitars, and you've got Foreigner! See what I mean? No, a truly original band, in my humble opinion, is one that can't be re-arranged to sound better than the original. Just my opinion.

Galen: Kids, life...

Robert Scott: We got into a rut. We played allot and I mean "played" allot. We used to rehearse everyday but that faded. We fired Chris and replace him with Keith Hutchinson. This guy could sing better than anyone we had worked with but our work ethics were gone. He left and so did I.

Rick: Basically just a continuation of what the first release had created. More airplay. More touring.

When did you split?

Jeff: I left in 1996.

Galen: By 1997, everybody had quit but me and Bernie (Garzio, last lead singer). We still play as Hybrid Ice now and then, but mostly as Sky Hy.

Robert Scott: May 28, 1991.

Rick: Four years ago.

In the 90s BOSTON covered an old HYBRID ICE song, how on earth did this happen?

Jeff: We're still trying to figure that out! Galen knows the answer to that one better than I do. He was in direct contact with theirpeople.

Galen: Jeff Dorenfeld (Boston manager at the time) called me out of the blue. I became friends with Tom Sholz and Brad Delp. Tom decided to do Magdelene on the Third Stage album. But when that didn't happen, he included it on the fourth platinum album "Walk On".

Rick: Galen should answer this one. He’s the writer.

How did you come in touch with Escape Music and when did you speak of the re-issue on CD?

Jeff: I don't remember exactly who contacted whom at first..but I think it was because of the original release and they contacted us about distributing "No Rules." We shipped copies over to them and the rest is now history. We (the band Members) got together and talked about re-releasing the first album in the Fall, 1999, for a couple of reasons; it had NEVER been on CD, there were fans out there who never got a copy of the LP, and the group had started recording again after I left the band and had material almost finished. I had Barrie's number and address from our dealings with the "No Rule's" record since I handled Pilot Records' business, and Rick called him about the re-release. Let me just say this about Escape, Khalil and Barrie; I think they did an excellent job on the re-release. They seem to have put a lot of love into re-mastering that record. And I personally am grateful for the opportunity to do business with them and their show of support.

Robert Scott: It just seems ironic that twenty years later we would get a record deal. Go figure.

Rick: I first met Barrie Kirtley by phone back when he bought NO RULES CD’s from us, maybe 7 years ago. After the original members had agreed to do this re-release, I dug up his phone number and asked him if he’d like to get involved with the project. That took place several months ago.

Is the CD also going to be released in the USA?

Jeff: Yes, we have a Limted Edition advertised on our website www.hybridice.com exclusively from the band. Very limited retail distribution, local only. If you think about that though, the Escape release is a USA release, too. Anyone in the States can just punch it up on the Internet.

Galen: I think it is already.

Robert Scott: Yes. I have people calling my store all the time wanting it.

Rick: Yes. It will be released in the U.S. in September, 2000.

On the CD are two new songs, tell us about them.

Jeff: I wasn't in the band when they were written or recorded. Well, come to think of it, I did work on "Test Of Time." But not as it's final version.

Galen: Two songs from an ill-fated attempt at third album. This time in my studio. Album was discontinued due to lack of interest. Lots of recording and mix done by me in my living room, having now leased my studio to another band.

Robert Scott: On the CD are two new songs, tell us about them. I wrote "Looking Glass" in my basement. I write short excerpts all the time and when this one came up it just happened. It is really fun when a song just appears before you and that does not happen allot to me. This one comes with a great deal of emotion. I went through addiction and have found recovery. I was trying to find piece of mind in all the wrong places. I did not like what I saw in the mirror.

Rick: Robert wrote LOOKING GLASS, Galen wrote TEST OF TIME. In my humble opinion, they’re both excellent songs, both very well written.

Does this mean that HYBRID ICE has reformed and do you plan to release a new CD in the future (on Escape Music)?

Jeff: We re-grouped for dinner in the past couple of months! And a few legal meetings. No really, we talked about it. It's possible but there are a lot of scheduling and logistical things to work out. We did get as far though to discuss how many shows, certain venues, that sort of thing. But didn't finalize anything. It really depends on the demand for it. Depending on the reception of the CD, that would dictate everything. Release a new CD? I think I've already answered that.

Galen: Anything can happen. Let's play in Europe!!

Robert Scott: I became very distant from the members of Hybrid Ice. We went through some difficulty when I left. The good thing is that time does heal. We are talking about the possibility of a reunion show but I do not see us reforming full time. As to recording another album, I would definitely be up for that. I have allot of new songs that would fit what we do.

Rick: We’ve discussed playing some dates, maybe in Europe. That would be great! As far as a new CD goes, that has been discussed as well, and I think there’s a good chance of that happening.

If so, will this again be the classy 80s AOR/Pomprock style of your first two records, and, if you have written
more new songs, can you tell us about them?

Jeff: I don't think that Hybrid Ice would do anything that isn't true to our form. Oh, sure the production would of course sound more "mature." That's inevitable. You improve with age, don't you think? As far as tunes I have written, I have been writing for specific other projects, Trojan Horse and Amazon Blonde. All vastly different than Hybrid Ice. But once you get in that room and get the flow going, yeah, I think I can, and would love to, contribute to our style in terms of writing.

Galen: Classy! Thanks! Most people over here call it '"dated". I'm with you. I like this style and hopefully I can keep up the quality and yeah, I have a bunch of new songs. Rock, Marshalls, Louder than Hell!! Big Vocals!!

Robert Scott: As I have said before there is a lot of talent in this band that has never shown up on a recording. We used to cover Yes,Genesis, Queen and everybody else. Some people have told me that we sound better than the original, which I don't understand. The songs I have written are a great deal more intricate. I know that this band could play it. I would focus more on the vocal harmonies. This was the strength that we had but we never capitalized on it. We are a little older now so we may have to drop a key or two but we can still sing.

Rick: I think LOOKING GLASS and TEST OF TIME are a good sample of that.

Finally, what is your opinion about today's rockgenre?

Jeff: I don't like some of it. I like others. I personally can appreciate all kinds of music. I mean, it's all about people and what they enjoy, isn't it? If people are digging Kid Rock or anything like that, that's their thing. We're all artists trying to reach the masses, through many different channels. I listen to a lot of different things. Heavy stuff like Creed, or the new, jazzy Steely Dan album or a cerebral Sting or the funkiness of The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Or Chopin for that matter. However, I prefer to play the artrock, progressive styles of bands like Yes and Kansas. Stuff that makes me have to go home and THINK about what part I'm going to play. Those types of songs are like puzzles, when all the right pieces fit together, you couldn't have done it any other way. I think music is slowly moving back to a more melodic style.

Certain female vocalists especially, seem to have a nice melodic style these days. Not exactly pomp rock, but it has melody. And that's a start. The music world is cyclic. Just follow music through the years and you'll see that there hasn't been THAT much truly new stuff. It all just renders different versions of the same thing. Even today's Pop vocal groups, like 'Nsync, Backstreet Boys, 2gether are all just rehashes of the Platters, Temptations and such with choreography. Although, the overall music is not as "musical," as it was in the "good old days," it's more beat driven. But then again, our parents said the same thing about The Beatles.

Galen: I try not to think about it.

Robert Scott: I listen to a lot of talk radio.

Rick: I feel as though things are improving in certain respects. The writing is better than it was in the early ninties.

Anything to add...

Jeff: I appreciate the opportunity you are giving Hybrid Ice to express ourselves. I thank you and your magazine and, for that matter, all of Europe for your support now and over the years.

Galen: More of Bernie Garzio to come in the future. Awesome, awesome talent! Thanks!!

Robert Scott: I just want to thank the fans for their support and all the women for not giving me a fatal disease.