Me With Creeps

Street Patrol, WSOU's longest running specialty show, has a record for breaking local and unsigned bands through to the big stage. Artists such as Biohazard, Ashes of Your Enemy, and Negative Sky all gained air time and exposure every Wednesday night from 8-10pm on 89.5fm. Hundreds of bands and solo artists submit their work every year in hopes to earn a place on WSOU.

In order to become a member of the Street Patrol family, bands must submit an original CD, fit WSOU's heavy metal format, and then go through the process of Yank or Crank that is a classic tradition of Street Patrol. During Yank or Crank, bands have one of their tracks played on air to be judged by listeners, who will then call up and vote on the bands fate. "Crank" if they love them, "Yank" if they don't. Cranked bands become a part of the show while Yanked bands get their CD's broken over the airwaves.

In addition to Wednesday nights, every few months, five Street Patrol bands are chosen as L-Cuts, meaning they will be played during regular rotation for a limited amount of time, giving them a chance to be heard throughout the day. For local bands, Street Patrol is that first step towards becoming signed and earning their place in regular rotation.

Currently working their way up through the Street Patrol ranks is local and unsigned band Me With Creeps. After being formed only a few years ago on a whim, they have not only held the title of most played L-Cut for a full 8 weeks in a row, but they have also become the number one played song out of all of WSOU with their track, "Try You On." Quickly gaining fans and followers, Me With Creeps went from being Cranked, to gaining L-Cut status, to playing in shows in only a matter of months.

Vocalist Dom Ostuni spoke about the band's beginnings when him and friend Pat Cancian, drummer for Me With Creeps, decided to try jamming out something new and different from the norm. Six songs were recorded in Fright Box Studios in Clifton NJ, and then that was it. "It was just going to be a onetime thing for fun" Ostuni says.
However, that was just the beginning for Creeps. Last year, the band restarted when George Adamz joined, taking on guitar, and revisiting the old tracks. Ostuni says "We kinda just started jamming to the songs here and there for fun, until we just said let's do it. Let's play them." From there two more tracks were added to the playlist along with a few more members. The line up now includes Steve Balazs on guitar, Alfred Chester on bass, and Greg Behan on keys. After becoming a member of Street Patrol, Me With Creeps then played in one of their presents shows in Butler, NJ, playing just before the headliner spot. They had their second show in Trenton, NJ where they competed for a spot on the Summer Slaughter Tour.

Now that Me With Creeps has some shows under their belt, an 8 song CD with merchandise on the way, and a growing reputation, they are definitely a band to keep your eye out for. Because even though Street Patrol bands start of local and unsigned, they tend to become the next big thing. - by Rebecca Blomgren / WSOU 89.5 FM Seton Hall Pirate Radio

It’s always difficult for a small-time band to stand out from a crowd, especially in a genre as diverse as heavy metal. Do you fall back on well-worn clichés and tough-guy posturing to appeal to the lowest common denominator? Or do you abandon formula and throw every musical idea you’ve ever had into the mix, risking being seen as a gimmick in the process? Sometimes, the answer to a question such as this isn’t quite so black and white.

Me With Creeps is a heavy metal band based out of Bergen County, New Jersey. Formed in 2010, they are currently unsigned and yet are making waves, being played regularly on Seton Hall’s college radio station WSOU due to popular demand from fans. How are they doing this? Are they the second coming of Metallica, seemingly destined for widespread, crossover appeal? Are they mired in controversy like the early 90s Norwegian black metal scene?

Enough with the rhetorical questions. Me With Creeps is succeeding because they play fun, no-frills, adrenaline pumping metal, simple as that. Though their sound has been done before, the band’s energy and enthusiasm sets them apart from the pack.

Musically, the group is most immediately reminiscent of melodic death metal groups, specifically the “Gothenburg metal” sound as popularized by groups like In Flames or Dark Tranquility. This is a common musical trope among many bands today, specifically those in the metalcore genre. And yet there is a definite sense of fun to Me With Creeps’ music that is lacking in their often very dour counterparts. Much of this atmosphere is due to the lyrics, which for the most part are fairly standard death metal fair, albeit less explicit than the norm. Lines like “cut me open, I exist” or “I see your body start to shake” from “Try You On” aren’t exactly poetic ruminations on the state of the world, but they don’t need to be – they fit the tempo of the music and serve to get your head banging, which oftentimes is far more preferable than getting bogged down in angst-filled tales of lost love.

In terms of musical ability, Me With Creeps is far more accomplished and polished than you might think at first. Vocalist Dom Ostuni primarily uses a Mikael Stanne type of roar, undeniably harsh yet quite decipherable, while also veering into clean singing on songs such as “Super Six.” His clean vocals are emotive without being whiny, and both his clean and harsh styles blend with the music quite well. The guitar work of George Adamz is also rather accomplished, providing melodic guitar solos and driving riffs. Greg Behan’s keys mostly lurk in the background providing atmosphere, though some songs such as “Counting Sheep” have foreground passages where they give the track a sort of melancholy edge. The rhythm section of bassist Alfred Chester and drummer Pat Cancian is simple yet appropriate, with Cancian adding some personal flourish to the usual array of blast beats and double-bass. Chester’s bass, sadly, is often drowned out by the guitar, probably due to the production, but nevertheless provides a solid bottom-end.

Though Me With Creeps does not have a full-length album out at the moment, all of the band’s music can be found at their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MeWithCreeps or their ReverbNation page: http://www.reverbnation.com/mewithcreeps. Those in the Northern New Jersey area, or hell, even those outside of New Jersey who have an appreciation for metal are urged to check these guys out, as Me With Creeps is a local band certainly worth getting behind. - DELAYED BURIAL: