Dan Bell Goes For Fifty Show @ Rumba Cafe 2/7/2020

Since it's Templeton week here at the blog, it's good timing to mention the upcoming "Dan Bell Goes For Fifty" show at Rumba Cafe on March 7th. In addition to Templeton, Dan beat the skins for Punchbug, The Last Hotel, Stonevelvet, and Miranda Sound.

Video: Useful by Templeton

Cringe.com: 1998 Interview with Christian Hurd

Before Templeton, Christian Hurd was busy with other bands and projects. In 1998, a year prior to the release of Templeton's first album, he talked with Cringe.com. Here's some of the interview:

Cringe: Can you explain why you chose the name Templeton for the band? 

Chris: I like bands that have childhood references because rock and roll has always been something that makes me feel young- just pop in some Rolling Stones and it's going to make you feel youthful and maybe even a bit rebellious. Templeton was a character in the book Charlotte's Web. As the story goes, Charlotte (a spider) wanted to save Wilbur's (a pig) life. Her idea was to spin a word into a web that described the pig, but she couldn't think of the right word and she needed help. Templeton was a resourceful rat who Charlotte knew could help. With a bit of coaxing, he went out and found some words in print that had some impact. The gist of it is that if you are putting together any kind of project which has some intricacy to it, then you have to use your resources. The first thing you need in putting a band together is getting people to play with you. I could write a million songs, but unless I have people playing with me, they'll never be performed the way I intended them to be.

New Additions: Trash To Treasure album by Templeton

Calling this a "New Addition" is sort of a cheat. I bought this album when Templeton had their CD release way back in 1999. But of course, like so many others, this was lost in my massive CD purge of the early 2000s when I converted everything to MP3s. Of course, a dumb mistake on my part. Luckily, years later, I tracked down the Derailleur Records release, and I'm glad I did. This was always one of my faves from the era - Christian Hurd has a knack for lyrics and hooks and the band has the right combo of raw/loose and precise/tight.

Know Yer Band: Templeton

Band: Templeton

Members
Christian Hurd - vocals/guitar
Bryan Myers/Tony Nguyen - guitar
Emily Ann Allen/Caleb Bandy - bass
Ben Kemp/Dan Bell - drums

Releases
1999 - Trash To Treasure album (Derailleur Records)
1999 - The Gift compilation (Not On Label)
2001 - Cringe.com/pilation Vol. 1 compilation (Cringe.com)
2003 - Documenting The Sounds of Relay Recording(s) compilation (We Want Action)
2015 - Near Misses compilation (Bandcamp)

We Want Action Compilation

In 2003 We Want Action, the label run by Relay Recording put out a compilation documenting the various bands on the label or that had recorded at the studio. It's a great time-capsule of 2003 Columbus, with bands such as Tiara, Denovo, Kopaz, The Sun, Templeton, Silencio, Miranda Sound, Frotiva, 84 Nash and The Last Hotel all contributing tracks.

New Additions: The Unkindest Cut Of All seven inch single by Monster Zero

One of the fun parts of this project is finding the connections between various bands of the 2000s that are linked in the 1990s. For example, Monster Zero features Brad Caulkins, who would go on to play in The Jive Turkeys and The Sun, and Emily Allen, who would go on to play in Templeton, Estee Louder and The Means, which included her brother David Wayne Allen that played on third Monster Zero single. All that said, Monster Zero has grungy indie rock sound perfectly at home for the mid-90s, and it makes sense where this family tree extends off to in the various directions.

Columbusmusic.com Compilations

Launched in 1999, Columbusmusic.com was an alternative to the established Cringe.com in covering the local Columbus music scene. While Cringe tended to have a more narrowed focus on bands, Columbusmusic.com covered everything and had the added feature of a message board. They also put on a number of showcases and released a few compilations, featuring bands such as Go Robot Go!, Templeton, Nude, Silo The Huskie, Pretty Mighty Mighty, Kopaz, Maery Lanahan and more.