It Rained Fire Today by Worried Sick

"We just never really thought about it, or even knew how to do it, for that matter. We just felt kind of isolated."

After high school, May got a job, got married and started raising a family. Sides took a stab at college, then moved to Kentucky. "When I got back in town in 1991, I didn't really have anything going," Sides said. "I called up Peter, and we both decided to pursue music again."

In 1993, May and Sides--working under the name Worried Sick--released a six-song cassette tape. Favorable reaction to the tape inspired the duo to continue to write songs, seek additional musicians and form a band.

By 1994, Worried Sick--guitarists Sides and May, bassist Neal Dewan, drummer Mike Kennedy and singer Michael Wilcox--was playing Triad clubs and building a following. Sides and May decided that it was time to make another album. The band's first tape had taken a weekend to record. The recently released album, It Rained Fire Today, took two years. "It took a little longer than we expected," Sides said, laughing. "We paid for the recording as we went along, so there were gaps in the process."

The album was recorded at Creative Audio Services in Winston-Salem, NC and was produced by Sam Moss, one of the Triad's most respected and versatile guitarists. It offers a refreshing respite from standard-issue alternative fare. The songwriting is melodically engaging, and the loose, energetic guitar-driven arrangements reflect an admiration for such bands as Crazy Horse, the Rolling Stones and MC5.

Sides said that Moss deserves much of the credit for the album's success. "When we first went in and recorded, everything sucked," he said. "To be honest , we didn't have a clue as to what we were doing. We went and asked Sam if he would help us out. What we did was take cassettes of us sitting around playing the songs on guitar, listen to them, then make notes. Then he made us sit around a table while he talked about his concept for each song. We gave him that power, and it made all the difference in the world. He gave all the songs a certain feel that carried through the album."

Sides said he is proud of the disc, but he harbors no grand illusions of stardom. "As far as making a career of this, I don't know," he said. "We all have busy lives. I know the desire is there, but the reality is that it will be tough."

Ed Bumgardner, Winston-Salem Journal CD review, September 27, 1996.

Average Customer Review: