From the Pepperdine Villa in Florence to the Key Club in Hollywood, these four boys are making some noise.
By Virginia Thomans
Assistant A&E Editor
Grattan Donahoe strolled into Pepperdine’s Villa in Florence for the first time in 2001, guitar case in hand.
“Oh sweet, you play guitar!” he heard.
“Oh great,” he thought.
He cringed at the thought of another chump, who couldn’t play, wanting to jam. Little did he know, this would be the beginning of the alternative rock band that would give him some of his best memories and best friends. The band, Black Molly, evolved over the past few years from two guys playing with chords in Florence to three Seaver alumni and one student rocking venues like the Whisky a Go Go and the Key Club in Hollywood.
Although they’re performing all over the Los Angeles area, the band’s roots are orange and blue.
“Pepperdine brought us together, but it’s also given us so many opportunities to play,” said Brad Opel, drummer and Seaver sophomore. Opel transferred to Pepperdine from Pasadena City College at the beginning of this semester.
On-campus coffee houses, two years of performing at the “Pie with the Pi Phis” philanthropy event, jamming in the Sandbar, playing in Pepperdine’s TV-26 station, and opening for Dashboard Confessional last year at the Student Government Association-sponsored concert were all stepping stones for the group.
Hard rock, ocean deep
Donahoe, lead singer and rhythm guitarist, described their music as “big, alternative rock.” While his voice is reminiscent of Scott Stapp’s of Creed, their sound is unique.
“It’s rebellion, it’s teenage angst, it’s just pure energy,” he said.
Their sound ranges from mellow and reflective to angry, but never hateful. The lyrics, written by Donahoe, touch subjects like love, taking time to smell the roses, finding a purpose in life and connecting one seemingly insignificant moment to your own life.
“I don’t cuss in my songs, and I don’t talk bad about people. I try to have a positive message in everything.” he said.
And, Donahoe tries to make the songs more than just catchy tunes. He would rather have somebody walk up and say a Black Molly song helped them through a tough time than say it was fun to hear.
“I’d rather have more meaning in it all than just a polished sound,” he said. “There are too many bands out there that have no meaning in the words.”
It’s the music’s depth combined with the fullness of the sound that makes them original. Donahoe taught himself to play guitar, so he invents things you’ll never find in guitar tab. The band members call his “big, fat” creations “Grattan chords,” which provide a rich backdrop for their harmonies. They also give lead guitarist/background vocalist Matt Jewett freedom to play single notes and more melodic riffs as his voice harmonizes perfectly with Donahoe’s. Audience members at their concerts have seen that Donahoe’s voice and the rest of the band’s talent are real and not the product of digital manipulation in a recording studio.
Yesterdays
While in Florence in 2001, Donahoe would be playing his guitar, and Jewett would try to come out and join him. Donahoe would get up and walk out. After multiple attempts, Jewett finally got Donahoe to give him a shot, and they started jamming together. Fortunately, Jewett proved himself.
“Everybody says they play guitar,” Donahoe said. “But there are guitar players and there are guitar owners. Luckily Matt (Jewett) was a guitar player.”
In Florence, the two ventured into the city to show their talents on the streets of the Ufizi and the Ponto Vecchio. They would leave a guitar case open for donations for a minute or two, but would then shut it because they were too embarrassed to look like beggers.
One of the songs on their CD “Other Faces,” is about longing for California. Donahoe wrote a verse for it on an overcast day in Florence. At the end of the semester Donahoe composed “Forty 1” for his amici (friends) in the program.
“I wanted to give everybody a going away gift because it’s kind of emotional when you’re leaving,” he said. “I’m sure it’s the same for anybody who’s been to an overseas program.”
The song conveys Donahoe’s thankfulness for the things he found in the Florence group.
It says “Well I have found within all of you/a love that I can’t describe/inspiration, gratitude/and someone beyond the skies … but the things I love the most/are coming with me on that plane/so I know it’s OK to laugh/as the tears fall down like rain.”
Back in Malibu in the fall, Donahoe and Jewett were putting together a Halloween show for the Malibu Inn. They decided it would be better with a full band, so Jewett called Matt Isbell, then a Seaver junior, and asked him to play bass for them. Jewett knew Isbell from high school, where they had both been in different bands. They got a drummer to play with them temporarily, but Isbell became the permanent bass player.
Now all they needed was a name. At the suggestion of two friends from Florence, the guys decided upon “Black Molly,” after Donahoe and Jewett’s favorite bar in Italy. With a new name, drummer and bass player, the band had a few glitches during the show but were well-received overall.
In January 2002, then-high school senior Brad Opel came to a practice to watch the guys jam and liked what he saw. He was on his way to watch them a second time when they called him to say he was playing at the practice instead of their drummer.
“I was so nervous,” he said.
It turned from watching to an official tryout, but the rest of the band said he passed with flying colors. Black Molly was complete.
Waiting for tomorrow
The band is working on songs for a second album and will possibly be touring this summer. A few independent record labels have expressed interest in them, but as of now they’re still an indie band. Before they sign a contract, they want to make sure they’re not going to be forced into changing their identity.
“We don’t want people telling us what songs we should play, what songs we shouldn’t play, who should be in the band, who shouldn’t be in the band, how we should dress, how we should comb our hair,” Jewett said.
“We won’t compromise,” Donahoe said. “We love what we do and we love each other, and the band is more important than the dream.”
Submitted April 1, 2004