First Offense by Crime Scene

By the time he was eight years of age; he picked up the bass guitar and quickly learned the basics of the instrument. Between the ages of eight and fourteen, he wrote and recorded several SONGS and played them for his friends and family. The recordings basically consisted of SOUNDS from various instruments and THINGS lying around, like the wind blowing, cars honking, toys falling down stairs, people talking, and the like. He was very interested in music and sounds and the parts they play in life. For instance, he was always fascinated why certain songs made people happy, while others made them sad or angry. He discovered that music and songs were a kind of separate entity existing in this universe. He strongly believes that music is not only heard by technical performance, but also felt by the soul. By the time Wayde turned fifteen, he learned, with the help of his father, how to play guitar. He also wrote his first song called, “I’m So Lonely.” Ever since then, he’s been constantly writing songs and poetry. Over the years, he’s played in a few bands, including, “Psychedelic Pillows,” “Departure,” “The Santairs,” and “Prospector,” and has played in countless taverns, parties, churches, and schools.

Over the last several years, he’s recorded nearly seventy of the five hundred songs he’s written at various studios, mostly at Audio Recording, Inc. in Seattle. He also had two books of poetry published entitled, “A Pure Exhibit Of Ancient Art Part One: The Poems,” and “Ageless Purity.” He has several projects in the making; continuously working on writing songs, several short stories and a short novel. IMAGERY RECORDS is the record label that Wayde created and owns the rights to the name.

Wayde is one of the founding members of the group CRIME SCENE and hopes to be playing with this band as long as they can stick together. The diverse talent of the group impresses him. He says, “This band has five members with five different musical backgrounds. Every musician brings so much to the table and likes different styles of music. They have an endless supply of talent it seems. Mark can sing country better than most of the original artists. Jay can smoke on that lead guitar and can put most guitarists to shame, with a lead and backing vocal to match. Nick is a great backing vocalist and singer in his own right, very solid on bass. And Paul hardly ever drops a beat and can scream with the best of them.”

As a musician, Wayde has performed at such venues as The Moose Lodge; Tony’s Happy Daze, Cascade Lounge, Eagles, Auburn’s Performing Arts Center, and much more.

Wayde is the rhythm guitarist and one of four lead singers of CRIME SCENE. When the situation arises, he can jump to lead guitar, bass, or drums. His interests/hobbies include music, writing, and gorgeous women. (As he states, “With the gorgeous women, you have an endless supply of inspiration.”) Some of his favorite artists are: The Beatles, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Heart, Olivia Newton-John, The Rolling Stones, The Bee Gees, Elvis Presley, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and many artists from the beginnings of rock and roll in the fifties and sixties.

NICK WILCOX

BASS GUITARIST/KEYBOARDS/VOCALS:

Nick is the other founding member of the band. He’s their bass player, lead and backing vocalist, and when the need arises, plays the synthesizer. He maintains that he and Wayde were born as twins to different mothers. Nick and Wayde met back in 1987, but didn’t cross paths again until 1989, when they became the closest of friends. [Not “closet friends” like Nick likes to say.] (They both claim that they still don’t know each other and haven’t yet met one another, but history records a different story.) Nick first began playing the bass for his churches’ musical group. Then events took a nasty turn for the worse. He started playing rock and roll. In the first band he played with, he frightened his neighbors (and several small animals) with their rendition of “Enter Sandman,” and other hard core rock tunes. When Nick met Wayde, the sounds were a bit mellower. Nick’s voice blended with Wayde’s so well, he liked what he heard and decided to stick around. “I knew there was something there,” he once told Wayde. Together, they started singing songs by such artists as The Everly Brothers, The Beatles, The Hollies, The Righteous Brothers, and The Beach Boys. Nick has used his bass playing skills to pay his way through college. This also required him to move away from the band for four years while he went to Chiropractic College in Portland, OR. Well, now he’s back and ready to pay off the student loans, so the band plays on.

His interests include “any beer,” music and equipment/gear, and Melissa (his forever girlfriend.) Some of his favorite artists are Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and just about any group with great harmony vocals.

MARK HASBROOK

ACOUSTIC GUITAR/VOCALS:

Mark is the little bit of country that every band should have, and CRIME SCENE has him. His situation was one of an interesting merger between two groups. Mark was the front man of a band he founded called Prospector. He recruited several musicians, finally settling on a drummer, a bass player, and two members of the soon to be CRIME SCENE, Wayde on rhythm guitar and Jay on lead guitar. When the band split apart due to personal differences, Wayde asked Mark if he would join CRIME SCENE. He accepted, and together they’re fighting crime together in music.

Mark started playing the (acoustic) guitar at the age of thirteen. While in high school, he performed his first gig at South Shore Middle School’s auditorium, consisting of three guitarists and one vocalist. Soon afterward he formed a group called Family Tradition, consisting only of family members. One of his most memorable moments was when he played in a band called Hatrick. They were the back-up band for Freddie Hart, who recorded such country songs as, “Keys In The Mailbox,” and “Easy Lovin’.” They played many venues, including the Elks club and Gerry Andles. While in the group Prospector, he played at such places as The Silver Moon Tavern, Star Lake Tavern Inn, and the Eagles club, with whom he is a member. He’s also performed numerous times as a solo act for various parties and retirement homes.

Mark has the natural “front man” stage presence that many bands lack. He’s the tallest member of CRIME SCENE and packs a powerful voice, though he didn’t start singing until the mid-nineteen eighties. After much encouragement, Mark became one of the finest country singers around and a very solid vocalist in general.

Some of Mark’s biggest influences in music are John Denver, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Brooks and Dunn, Willie Nelson, Randy Travis, and Buddy Holly. He’s also tried his hand at writing a few songs and has played them with CRIME SCENE. His roots are pure country and classic rock. Like he says, “I like anything with a beat that you can dance to.” Mark simply says that he has only two hobbies, “Music, and family.” In such a diverse group as CRIME SCENE, it appears there will always be room for Mark Hasbrook; a perfect addition to compliment the band.

JAY MUNGER

LEAD GUITARIST/VOCALS:

Arguably the most naturally “autistic” (as Jay states smilingly) gifted of the group, Jay makes it possible for CRIME SCENE to play just about any popular song ever recorded. When he plays his lead guitar, people shut up and listen. (Not “walk out!” as he so amply states at times.) Around 1997, Jay met Wayde and Nick through a mutual friend, Dan Penland (A steady drummer in his own right, who cut a record years ago in a band called Catch III.) and had a casual jam session. He did feel that Wayde and Nick had great voices and the blend sounded natural and right. Little did he know that when Jay added his backing vocal to the mix, the three part harmonies opened an entirely new door, allowing the group to perform songs by the Eagles, America, and The Beatles. Jay also has the right touch for lead vocals when it comes to the “mellow” sounds. Wayde has a grungy yet powerful vocal, Nick has a southern rock growling vocal, Mark has a powerful and projecting mid to low vocal, while Jay rounds out the group with his gentle yet sophisticated vocals.

Jay played with Wayde and Nick while the group was still calling themselves The Santairs, but soon went on his way. By 1998, Jay joined Mark in the group Prospector, and soon afterward, Wayde joined the band. During this time, Jay and Wayde became familiar with one another’s style, and soon developed a point, counter-point style of guitar playing. With a little practice, all the guitar gaps were soon filled. When Prospector broke apart, Wayde and Nick asked Jay and Mark to join the group. Then the magical sounds started.

Jay names the guitarists of the seventies: Beck, Page, and Clapton along with, of course, Hendrix as his influences. He has worked behind the scenes writing advertisement music and has worked with Canned Heat, Chris Newman, Steve Bruce band, Jamie Stone and others who were one step away from stardom themselves and played with various touring acts. Jay has also written a few songs that he’s introduced to the band.

One of his biggest guitarist influences is Jimi Hendrix. And judging from Jay’s unique sound, Hendrix rubbed off him in just the right way. Jay dares CRIME SCENE to play songs that no other band would attempt to play.

Mr. Munger has a myriad of accomplishments, including teaching others the beautiful sounds that “his” instrument makes and recording several albums of personal material. With all the places Jay has performed and all the groups he had the pleasure of consorting with, it would literally take pages to list. And with what Jay brings to CRIME SCENE, the group can go where no group has gone before, pushing the limits of music itself.

(At this time, Jay recently got married and has left the band indefinitely. Ken Fordyce has replaced him on lead guitar. You can visit Ken’s website at www.mirrorsound.com for more interesting information about him and his studio. It’s the same studio CRIME SCENE recorded their new and first CD/album.)

PAUL KOLLMAN

DRUMMER/PERCUSSIONIST/VOCALS

Paul is the newest addition to CRIME SCENE. He joined the band at the beginning of this year, and the group hopes to have many good years with him keeping the beat. CRIME SCENE was performing at the China Sea in Des Moines when Paul walked in the heard them play. When they heard he was a drummer, the group asked him if he'd like to sit in for a few songs. He did and performed well, showcasing his obvious talent and ease on the drums. This of course gets Wayde Brown out of the drummers' seat and back to the rhythm guitar, which is how it should be. His influences include Rock, Jazz, Country, R&B, and Gospel. (It should be noted that 3 of the 5 members of CRIME SCENE have performed in a Christian band.) He recently finished working with a Latin/Jazz group called "Groupo Amoroso." He spent three years with The Olson Brothers Band between 1992-1995. They released an album entitled, "River In The Rain" with Paul playing all the drum tracks. Between 1999-2001, Paul performed for the church services at Greenwood Christian Church in North Seattle, while working with a few blues bands at the same time. Between the years of 1975-1984, he was with several other bands, performing various styles of music. Paul still works in the music studio, performing with other bands on an as needed basis. He's also a lead and backing vocalist, adding yet another "vocal instrument" to a group that already has four lead singers. After meeting with the group, Paul stated, "I think we are going to be able to put together some good music, and (I) feel that the chemistry is just right for MAKING SOME GREAT NOISE." Lastly, he adds, "I just want to be with some guys that can play well and want to have a lot of fun doing it." With Paul as CRIME SCENE'S newest drummer, the group may never drop a beat!

Average Customer Review: