Freakin’ out Mike Hamel and company head west BY BOB GULLA

Well, it had to happen. It’s time for this bird to fly. Mike Hamel and Freakshow are set to leave town next month for Los Angeles. Maybe for good. At least for a long while. At this point, they’ve set their minds to leaving and there’s no turning back. After laboring in the Providence rock ditch for a decade, it was high time for a change, and an opportunity to explore the possibilities of a much larger (and unforgiving) scene, where the upside is enormous and the downside is the same.

"This is the biggest risk I’ve ever taken in my life," says Hamel, "but I think we’re ready for it. We have something new and fresh to offer and the band’s never been better." After their experience with the Live Unsigned organization turned sour, the band decided enough was enough. Go west. At least the sun shines out there.

"I can strut with the rest of them," says Hamel, like a true rebel. "I’m a good enough bullshitter. I’ve gotten through my whole life BS’in’. It’s a big game. Doesn’t matter if you’re a lawyer, doctor, garbage man, guitarist. It’s one and the same."

Not that Hamel and company are naturally cut out for life in Tinsel Town. "I’m not West Coast," he says. "I’m an East Coast kid. They’ll sprinkle my ashes over the Blackstone. I’ll show up out there all pasty. They can spot you a mile away. But we’ve got 10 years under our belt. We know what we’re doing. If I thought we’d get chewed up, we wouldn’t be doin’ it."

Freakshow isn’t exactly heading west without a paddle. They’ve made contact with an enthusiastic management company that’s ready to shill for the band when the time is right. As of now, they’d like to go out and get a place, a space that’ll lend itself to both living and practicing, then hit the streets, spreading the word along with hundreds of other bands attempting to drink from the same exalted cup. "I have pride in this band. I’ll do whatever I have to do to make it," Hamel says.

On the way out, the band had tried to book a tour, but too many roadblocks prevented that plan from going down. Now, the band wants to fly to LA straight-away, and start touring the west ASAP. "We plan on going out every night with a bunch of CDs, make something happen. Put packages together and get the word out. I wanna get signed to a label, like any other musician."

Reasons for staying locally right now are few. "We all have shit jobs anyhow. Who cares where we do our shit jobs? What else are we gonna do? Get a case of Pabst and practice? We can’t even practice every night here."

If it doesn’t work out, the band will return with heads held high. "My tail definitely won’t be between my legs," says Hamel. "At least we can say we tried."

Freakshow will play their send-off gig on Friday, May 30, at the Met Café with Transparent, Saturday Night Palsy, and Shed.

TANYA DONELLY & FRIENDS. Local girl will anchor a benefit for the Nick O’Neill Scholarship Fund, which will take place on Friday (the 30th) at the Vartan Gregorian School on Wickenden Street in Providence. Nick died in the Station fire and has been the object of much admiration in the months since.

The night, which will be emceed by none other than Rudy Cheeks, will feature Tanya playing with Dean Fisher, Blizzard of 78 (formerly Delta Clutch), the StereoBirds (formerly the Mockingbirds; see below), Eric Fontana, and members of Slim Cessna’s Auto Club/Blackstone Valley Sinners. Everyone will be playing short acoustic sets except for Tanya, who will be doing a full set, something that happens too rarely around here. The show runs from 7 to 10:30 p.m., and the venue is the All Children’s Theater, where Nick spent much of his time. Admission is $20. You can go to the following website for more info on Nick: www.angelsofrhodeisland.com/angels/Noneil/noneil.htm. Call 435-5300 for reservations.

R.I.P, DELTA CLUTCH. And speaking of Delta Clutch, after years of deliberation, the band has decided to change its name. In the words of the band, "it just didn’t seem like the name Delta Clutch fit any longer and we were often being mistaken as a blues band due to the word ‘delta’ in the name." Hence, Blizzard of 78.

So what can you expect from the newly monikered pop stars? Toward the end of last year while the band was working on a new album, they reached out to Paul Q. Kolderie to see if he’d like to mix a couple of the tracks. He loved the roughs, and asked if the band would like to go in and do some new material with him producing. Though that has delayed proper release of the album, it did yield a mini-EP that the band is giving away at shows. You can download all three of the songs at their new website (tbo78.com). The new full-length album is almost finished and preliminary reports are overwhelmingly positive. One song from the album is on the new website, too. It’s called "I’m Not the One," and it features none other than Tanya Donelly on backing vocals.

Blizzard of 78 plays on Friday (the 30th) at the Nick O’Neill benefit (see above), and on Saturday (the 31st) at the Harpoon Brewstock Festival in Boston.

R.I.P., THE MOCKINGBIRDS. Like Delta Clutch, the ’Birds needed a clean break name-wise. As noted, they will celebrate the birth of the StereoBirds on Friday at the Nick O’Neill benefit, and on Saturday (the 31st) at the Century Lounge, where the new ’Birds will be joined by former VEJ front man, John Ronci, on bass. Their set will be followed by Atlantic Records recording artists Antigone Rising.

Equipped with new tunes and limited edition "No Longer Mocking / Even More Rocking" commemorative stickers and T-shirts, expect the StereoBirds to turn it on good with some kick-ass pop and Heather at the helm.

WANDERING EYE. Congrats to Sean and Missi and all their friends at Rattlehead for pulling off an amazing Providence Invasion last week. Twenty-eight bands ran rampant through the city (sort of) on a gorgeous day (Tuesday the 20th), turning all kinds of unsuspecting people into music fans, if at least for a few minutes. Unlike last year, the weather cooperated and the day went off without a hitch. Nice job, everybody!

Christopher Monti will perform songs from his new album Swampland Flowers on Friday (the 30th) at 8 p.m at Café Zog on Wickenden. Monti’s new disc is flavored with calypso rhythms, blues, and folk. On Saturday there’s a great lineup at the Blackstone, with Radio Wallpaper (in their last appearance for a few months), the ever-mighty Grandizer Punch, and the force of nature that is Sasquatch & the Sick-a-Billys.

Also, don’t forget that you can catch some gritty blues every Sunday night at the Custom House Tavern down on Weybosset with John "Crawlin’ Snake" Mac and friends. Mac’s the real deal, so much so that this gig, originally a two-month run, has turned into an 11-month odyssey. All hail local blues!

E-mail me your music news at big.daddy1@cox.net