Austin Sound Blog
"Video: Blueberry Farm" June 20, 2008 by John Laird (website)
This video for Full Service's "Blueberry Farm" has been out for a couple of months, but now that the blistering heat has arrived we're ready to share. Why? Because the song is just that kind of jam (i.e. one that has a breezy pace and a sweet guitar solo) that you put on while you lounge around on the back porch drinking with your friends and talking about how you remember when gas was less than a $1 a gallon.
Plus, Curtis Pollock did an admirable job directing the video, and he deserves a shout-out.
LineUp Magazine
Full Service - "The Dig" June, 2008 by Kelsey D (website)
"A little something for everyone can be found on the latest album, THE DIG, from Full Service. The new release is an easily likable rock album that screams "let the good times roll!" THE DIG centers upon heavy, tongue-flicking guitar riffs under monotone reggae touch as Full Service moves to transition in hints of several musical categories throughout each track. "Don't Deny" is perhaps the perfect example of this as the song segues from punk-rock intor to a Sublime-like reggae beat and then pushes back out towards nasty guitar work. You will also find hip hop and metal influences, "Tasteless Gravy" is a successful experiment of those two genres, but the album proves to be just as sweet as it is heavy wtih songs such as "Blueberry Farm" and "Blueglass Lake" that drown you into a chill sway and bring a smile to your face. THE DIG succeeds as an album you can put on at any time and everyone around you will be content with the selection."
The New York Times, The New York Daily News, The LoHud
Blogs about the FULL SERVICE show at the Yankees v. Astros game June 14, 2008 by Tyler Kepner, Pete Abraham, and Anthony McCarron
New York Times
"On Saturday, Houston is the City of Brotherly Love" Some years ago, my two brothers and I all played in the same Connie Mack League baseball game. It was sort of a farce, actually; our team was short a few players, and the coach called my youngest brother, Dave, out of the stands, draped a baggy jersey over him and stuck him in right field. He was 11, I was 17, and our other brother, Tim, was 14.
That was the last time we were all at a game in some sort of working capacity, until Saturday at Minute Maid Park. I’ll be covering the Yankees-Astros game for The Times, and Tim and Dave will be providing pregame entertainment for fans.
Their Austin-based band, Full Service, will play during batting practice from the Conoco Home Run Pump pavilion overlooking left-center field, starting at 4:15 p.m. If you’re there, check ’em out. If not (shameless plug alert), check out their Web site.
Tim and Dave have long hair and tattoos, and they play guitar and drums. I have short hair, no tattoos, and I play the radio. But we all love baseball, and one day, they’ll make it big.
If that sounds too optimistic … well, I thought the same thing about someone else back in 1993. I had decided to go to college in Nashville, and when I told this to Tug McGraw, the Phillies legend I’d see around Veterans Stadium, he told me he had a son in Nashville who was going to be a big star someday.
Nobody knew Tim McGraw back then, but Tug was right.
So here’s hoping the Full Service boys hit it big too. And the folks at the game tonight can say they heard them during batting practice, way back when. - by Tyler Kepner (NY Times)
New York Newsday
Hot, New Band Alert: Full Service
Tyler Kepner, NY Times Yankees beat writer and loyal TFS reader, gave me a CD on Saturday in Houston. Not just any CD.
Seems Tyler's two brothers (Tim and Dave) are in a band called "Full Service" out of Austin, Texas, and the band played at Minute Maid Park before Saturday's Yankees-Astros game.
I didn't really listen to them on Saturday because I was busy trying to ferret out some piece of information about the Yankees or eating the delicous pregame spread or something, and I didn't want to plug the band here until I listened to the CD. I can't have the awesome power of TFS used for evil purposes no matter how much I like Tyler. What if Best picks up the plug and then his 14 million blog readers per day crash the Full Service web site? I didn't want to be responsible for that.
So I listened to the CD today in the car. It's rockin'. So now I feel like I can honestly tell you to check out Full Service's Web site and get the 411 on their shows and stuff.
They will be playing in Manhattan's Sullivan Hall on July 12 and at KeySpan Park in Brooklyn on July 16 -- the day after the All-Star Game. - Anthony Rieber (NY Newsday)
The LoHud
It's A Small Rockin' World It’s a wonderful thing when baseball and music intersect. Such will be the case tomorrow at Minute Maid Park.
Our pal Tyler Kepner, the beat writer from the Times, has two brothers (Tim and Dave) who live in Texas and have a rock band. Full Service will be playing at the ballpark at 4:15 p.m.
The boys will be out at the Conoco Home Run Pump overlooking left center field. They go on at 4:15. So if you’re in Texas and headed to the game, come out early and enjoy the music. - by Peter Abraham (The LoHud)
New York Daily News Here's a note from the pre-game, too. Full Service, a rock band made up of two-thirds of The Brothers Kepner, played during the Astros' batting practice. Tyler Kepner is the Yankee beat scribe from the New York Times and his brothers, Tim and Dave – aka Bonesaw and Hoag – are in the Austin-based band. Good stuff. Tim and Dave have been great supporters of the New York media baseball game in which we tangle with the Boston media twice a year, home and away. One year, they did some hilarious dancing to a Marvin Gaye song atop the dugout at Fenway between innings while we NY writers crushed the Beantowners. Check out Full Service. - by Anthony Mcarron
The Austin Chronicle
"Off the Record" May 30, 2008 by Austin Powell (website)
Full Service's homemade video for "Alpine" documents the local Sublime enthusiasts' stomping grounds on South Congress and the effects of its ongoing gentrification. Other music industry representatives looking to voice their opinions about social issues facing the local music scene can do so by completing the Live Music Task Force's survey HERE.
BLOGGERS TALKING ABOUT THE FULL SERVICE "TAKEOVER TOUR!"
Check out the growing list of bloggers spreading the word about the big July tour! more added as they come in. April and May 2008
The Amherst Student
Amherst College Newspaper
Feature Article and Interview with Bonesaw April 30, 2008 by Nick Mancusi (website)
In 2000, Tim Kepner ’00 was your archetypal Amherst student: standout on the baseball team, American history major, and guitarist in his free time. Eight years of hair-growth and musical discovery later, he goes by the name Bonesaw in his reggae/rap/metal outfit, Full Service. Based out of Austin, Tex., Full Service displays an incredible range of influences, jumping between Sublime and Slayer and Public Enemy from track to track. Their recently released fifth full-length album, entitled “The Dig” [available on iTunes], is a lesson in blending authentic reggae grooves and classic rock riffage with unique creativity. I recently had the chance to speak with Bones about rock, life and his time as a Jeff.
The Daily Texan
Austin Reggae Festival Preview April 18, 2008 by Sarah Johnson (website)
"The festival highlights the ways artists can interpret reggae music. From the traditional sounds of Luciano and Culture to rock-reggae bands like Full Service or the funky style of Tribal Nation, the framework of the genre remains true while the musical accents vary with every band. . .
Full Service will rock the stage reggae-style Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Their electric guitar shreds combine with steady, authentic reggae beats.
“It evolved as a result of a love affair with music based on both ‘the drop’ — which includes hip-hop and rap as well as reggae — and ‘the riff,’ which of course includes slash and izzy and hard rock and all that,” said Hoag, drummer and singer for the band.
Like all the other artists, Hoag believes in the soul of his music. When asked how he would convince someone to listen to reggae music, his response summed up the vision behind the music.
“All you’d need to do is play them a quick sample and they’d start to feel it. They’d recognize that feeling, like they knew it from somewhere,” he said. “And they’d realize that they know it from themselves, and from the rhythm of the human race, people walking, people moving. Then they’d start to feel it. This is an example of one of reggae’s central truths: Who knows it, feels it.”
Jersey Beat Magazine
CD Review of "The Dig" April 15, 2008 by Phil Rainone (website)
"Austin, TX’s Full Service has that pivotal, love-'em-or-leave-'em factor in their music. At times they play peppy, post-mod pop that has some teeth to it ("Hi Ho," "Blueberry Farm," "Hotter in the House"), but then they try to be a little like, "Punk Goes Crunk." On "Tasteless Gravy" they demonstrate their love of Red Hot Chili Peppers' funk and flair, but it just doesn't come across as original. "Don't Deny" or "Bombs Killed My Father" are better examples of what Full Service are capable of, with the splintered mojo of 311, or Rage Against The Machine. They mix dominant percussion with sharp, melodic vocals creating tracks with abundant personality, and enormous rhythmic cadence. After all is said and done, you're gonna love 'em!".
Austin INSite magazine
CD Review of "The Dig" January 25, 2008 by Sean Claes (website)
"If you haven’t discovered this band of brothers in Austin yet, here’s the deal with FULL SERVICE. They play music. Good music. They record albums. Many albums. Full lengths, EPs, Samplers, you name it.
Think of it this way. . . owners of cars know that they need to change the oil every 3-4 months. That’s about the amount of time between Full Service releases. It’s like they are committed to change their listeners musical oil every few months. I’d criticize them if they were coming out with generic rock. . . but these guys seem to bleed good music.
The Dig is no exception. This eleven-song disc jumps genres and levels of seriousness, but at the core of it is the two-part harmony of the brothers Kepner (vocal/guitarist Bonesaw and vocal/drummer Hoagman).
Songs like “Do It Again” and “Hi Ho” have a sound that is typical FS-fare – that reggae-infused mellow beachfront feel that seems to be at the core of the band.
Of course, they love a bit more of the rock on other tracks (their guitarist IS called Bonesaw, remember?). They channel Rage Against the Machine in the hardcore “Tasteless Gravy.” Classic metal seems to be the source for the sounds of “Blasted Lands” and “Subterranean.”
If you hear this, you’ll want to own it, so you may as well buy it from the guys and shake their hands at a live show.
They Were All Taken Blog
CD Review of "The Dig" January 16, 2008 by Zerocool
"The Dig is Full Service's newest release, featuring eleven tracks of pure crunchy groovy reggae rock goodness. The album is diverse, in typical FS style. The Dig ranges from slower, more toned down tunes like Blueberry Farm and Egwene to up tempo songs like Bombs Killed My Father and Subterranean. . . The band stretches and tests their boundaries, pushing beyond pigeonholes. Their music is all at once familiar and yet refreshingly original. "
Texas A&M Battalion Student Newspape
"FULL SERVICE on Campus" September 27, 2007 by Ben Johnson
"Bonesaw, Hoag, Twinky-P, and Smell, the four members of local band Full Service, have played the Lunch Box concerts in front of the Memorial Student Center three times. You may or may not remember the barefooted and shirtless musicians who draped jolly rogers over their equipment, but once you listen to their music you may find them hard to forget. "
The Wall Street Journal
"Summer Stage in Nantucket" September 7, 2007 by Adam Bresnick (website)
". . . For the past two summers, Elias has sung, and I have accompanied him on my Martin D-1 guitar, for what we call "Nantucket Gutbucket," spirited renditions of country and honky-tonk tunes, mostly from the '40s and '50s. In the summer of 2006, we had the good fortune to play with Tim and Dave Kepner, guitarist and drummer of the up-and-coming Austin, Texas, reggae metal band Full Service. Tim played solos on a banged-up Yamaha, while Dave kept time on his makeshift kit assembled from the pots and pans of his family's rental house. While the island welcomes roving musicians to Main Street, its denizens draw the line at amplification and real drums. This summer, Tim and Dave wouldn't make it to the island until after our departure, so we would have to proceed as a duo. . . "
The Houston Chronicle Baseball Blog
"FULL SERVICE at Minute Maid Park Tonight" August 10, 2007 by Jose Ortiz (website)
If you plan on attending the game tonight, I strongly recommend you show up early to listen to the band Full Service playing near the Conoco Pump from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
I hear Full Service is one of the cool rising rock bands in Austin these days. Moreover, they know their baseball.
Bonesaw and Hoag are two of the most educated baseball fans in America. Their brother, the highly respected Tyler Kepner of The New York Times, covers the New York Yankees.
Believe it or not, Bonesaw and Hoag, AKA Tim and Dave Kepner, graduated from Amherst and Yale, respectively. Tim was an above-average baseball player at the Division III level and even attended a tryout camp with the Astros.
I covered the Mets with Tyler Kepner, a graduate of Vanderbilt, and this has to be one of the brightest, most entertaining and talented families to ever come out of the Philadelphia suburbs. Make sure to check out Full Service tonight.
The New York Times
"Bats Baseball Blog" August 10, 2007 by Tyler Kepner (website)
". . .On a personal note – and a lighter one – if any readers are going to the Astros/Brewers game on Friday in Houston, check out the band Full Service, playing from 5:30-6:30 behind the Conoco Home Run Pump in center field at Minute Maid Park.
My brothers, Tim and Dave, are in the band. The Astros actually held a tryout once and invited my brother Tim, back when he was a switch-hitting star at Amherst College. Now they’re giving him his first music gig at a major league ballpark. Check ‘em out if you can."
The Baton Rouge Advocate
"Get Full Service Saturday at Click's" June 16, 2007 by (website)
"Where most bands become trapped by the motto of “Sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll,” the Austin-based reggae metal band Full Service lives by “Sports and playing good music.”
Their fun-loving and free-spirit attitudes are reflected best with their names: Bonesaw (vocals, guitar), Hoagman (drums, vocals), Twinky-P (bass) and Smellman (rhythm guitar).
“Can I print your real names, our would you rather I use your stage names?” I asked Bonesaw during our phone interview. . .
KLBJ 93.7FM in Austin, TX
Full Service performs LIVE!May 29, 2007(website) This was our second appearance with Loris Lowe on THE rock station in Austin. This time we played two songs live, acoustic, including the unveiling of the new songs "You'll Pay." Download them and listen!
"The fourth album from Full Service, “Recess,” is like one of those jawbreaker candies. You know the ones where the oversized candy sphere is made up of a collection of different colored and flavored layers. Each track that Full Service delivers has its own distinct flavor and sound. . . read the full serticle...
University of South Alabama Vanguard Newspaper
"No Shirts, No Shoes, Full Service." Interview by April Havens April 9, 2007(website)
Vanguard: What makes your band different?
Hoag: If you go to a Full Service show, there's going to be like hip-hop guys in the crowd, black people, white people, skaters, preppies, maybe a housewife or two because they like some of our slower stuff, punk-style people, people who are just too cool and they just kind of stand there and nod their heads, and even kids. It's a stew of humanity.
What is most impressive about Full Service is their ability to really capture different sounds and feels in their songs. From listening to the progression of the first three songs you get a great sense of how this is done. They clearly pay a lot of attention to all aspects of songwritting, not only tempo and volume by rhythm and lyric content. . . Whether playing metal riffs, wailing solos, or reggae rhythms, Full Service creates music which can’t help but make the listener think “summer”. This Austin band has captured the feeling of a bright summer sun and used it to make a sound which is entirely their own. Read the full article. . .
CDReviews.com by Kristen Brown. Nov. 2006(website)
Their interesting mix of genres and quirky, mellow attitude makes for one of the strongest albums of its kind this year. They manage to achieve something, surprisingly, that far too many bands can’t figure out how to attain: versatility. . . What come out of it are songs like “Ramona” and “Clock Ticks,” which sound a lot like Sublime with a hint of Incubus, and others, like “Yanamo,” which is distinctly grungy and has a harder rock edge. The real pleasant surprise, however, is “Maybe It’s You,” which brings Weezer to mind during the chorus, somehow. And to make themselves look even better, “Sully’s Wedding,” brings to mind Dave Matthews Band’s “Angel,” but miraculously they sound nothing like Dave Matthews Band themselves.
Finally. Originality has been resurrected. read more. . .
The University of Dallas News (Dallas, TX) by Gabe Roberts. February 2006
“The band was sporting hair which caused an anonymous audience member to remark, “oh, it’s those hippies.” The four band members seem as though they are determined to disprove these objections through the pure energy of their performance. They play their instruments like madmen, stretching their sonic abilities to the limit, and at times, past it.”
The New Times (San Luis Obispo, CA) by Glen Starkey. February 2006
“Austin based FULL SERVICE - like Sublime or Bad Brains - mixes metal, punk, and reggae. But unlike those two bands, FULL SERVICE's music yields a decidedly different sound, which they call "crunchy reggae loud groove metal," and the difference is the "groove." read more. . .
Full Service refers to the fact that at any given show you go from soothing rhythm to hard rock to heavy funk to . . . well, a combination of all three. The brilliance is in how it is all woven together in a way that nobody has done before. . . The more I've listened to the band the more I've come to realize that the riveting guitars and the catchy baseline are strangely melodic in ways unlike any other band has mastered. Everything is upbeat without feeling forced. The music seems to echo Full Service's outlook on life with the integrity that is lacking in most of today's music. To listen is to appreciate their perspective on life. read more. . .
IUNGO Magazine (San Antonio, TX) feature article April 2006. website
It stands to reason that Full Service fuses elements of reggae, rap, rock, and metal. For one, their name almost begs the musical approach of a python, devouring all genres to add to their set list. But when you consider the quintet hails from Austin, "Live Music Capital of the World", a city that throws down dirty each year and hosts bands of every ilk, instrument, and stripe, their sound makes even more sense. Full Service personifies the amorphous experience of a seven-beer shamble down Sixth Street, groove melding into rock molting into hip hop. read more. . .
FULL SERVICE mentioned in the NY Daily NewsJune 2006
Jersey Beat Magazine (New Jersey) by James Testa. March 2006.
“FULL SERVICE – Sawngs (www.fullservicemusic.com) These Austin mooks leap back in time about 15 years, when about half the indie bands in America seemed to be playing this style of hairy, sweaty, shirtless funk. They’ve even got totally duded out names like Hoag, Bonesaw, Twink, and Smell. Thing is, they do it well, with chops and groove to spare, mixing elements of da funk with reggae, surf, rock, and even a little Faith No More quirkiness. Since this sound mutated into the jam band genre, it’s not surprising that Full Service likes to stretch things out. But they keep the solos tasty and concise, and with this much soulfulness going on, you really don’t mind the 5 minute songs. In fact, I kinda like it. In 1992, I would have thrown this against the wall; nowadays, it’s a breezy, refreshing change of pace. Go figure.”
SoManyBands.net December 2005
Best Discovered Bands 2005: ". . .Their live show is energetic and keeps the audience interested and all three of their cds are chock full of well-written and catchy tunes-start to finish. Hardest working band in Austin.” read more. . .
Tallahassee Democrat (Florida) by Katie Schrdal. July 2005
“Get Serviced: Straight from Austin, TX, Full Service arrives to swirl your world at a mix and match show with Led Zep tribute band Physical Graffiti tonight at Big Daddy's. On it's seriously booty-movin' CD, Full Service fuses chunky, metal-edged guitar riffs to smart lyrics, melodic vocals and a sneaky, skanky beat to create a nigh-irrestistible hybrid of hard-rock, reggae and hip-hop. It's crunchy as heck and you can totally dance to it. Tell drummer/vocalist Hoag, who's been my faithful and most amusing e-mail correspondent for a month or so now, I said "Rawk On!"
Skull Sessions Studios (Houston, TX) from producer James Hook.
“. . . Your style is, as I'm sure you know, very different. It's almost as if you don't even listen to the radio. I personally think this is a good thing. So much of the same old shit out there...it's nice to hear something fresh. . . My partner and I think you have huge national potential both in image as well as song writing.”
The Austin Chronicle (Austin, TX) by Chris Gray. December 2004
“Gift Ideas from The Austin Chronicle: "TCB" offers 15 recent local releases to divert your holiday green from Time Warner, Sony, and Universal."
FULL SERVICE, 3 Will Ride Forth (Mashup): Sublime they're not, but the trio's bouncy fusion of reggae, metal, and hip-hop has the strength of its knit-cap convictions (and conventions). Now that 311 is covering the Cure, somebody's got to.”
