Volumen 1 :: Shane Hickey
Volumen 2 :: Doug Smith
Volumen^2 :: Bryan Hickey
bKCAWCK :: Chris Bacon
Volumen Beta :: Bob Marshall


 
Doug Smith Volumen 2
Doug Smith

If Shane is the high school Physics Club treasurer of VOLUMEN, Doug is the affable, popular guy who toes the fine line between band dork and senior class president. Cheerleaders leak the info that they want him to ask them out, but he�s always genuinely nice to the less popular girls and boys, too. In addition to writing most of what doesn�t get written by his longtime friend and musical partner, Shane (in the platonic sense, that is�at least we THINK so), Doug�s signature wikkid lyxx and fine tenor are the yin to Shane�s yang, the butter to Shane�s muffin, the hot dog in Shane�s....well, anyway, the other half of the songwriting equation. Additionally, Doug is a beacon of calm and tranquility in his other bandmates� roiling sea of adolescent squirreliness, and a fine cook to boot. The last male bonding I did with Doug was undertaken when we spent two days in the Montana wilderness picking morel mushrooms. Oh, the magic he worked with those little morsels...


 
 
Here's some articles and other random press for your viewing pleasure.

The University of Idaho Argonaut 03/31/2006
URL: View Actual Article
Title: Volumen rocks in a new-wave way
Author: Michael Howell

Saturday is April Fool�s Day. As the day goes on, the joy of pulling pranks on friends, family and random strangers will start to fade. When that happens, it may be time to head to Mikey�s Gyros at 7 p.m. and listen to some good music.
Volumen, a band that describes its genre as �any mix of the three words new, wave, and heavy,� will be performing as part of its �Science Faction� tour.
�We�re excited to be coming to Moscow,� said Shane Hickey, the lead singer of the band. �My brother Bryan, who is also in Volumen, has been here twice with different bands. He�s always talking about how everyone there is so into the music whenever he�s played.�

�Science Faction,� the band�s newest album, contains many heavy tracks. The first track, �Side of a Box,� starts the album off strong. Shane Hickey growls his lyrics almost angrily to a riff from Doug Smith�s guitar and a strong rhythm from drummer Bob Marshall and bassist Bryan Hickey. Chris Bacon, who adds his synthesizer, also brings a stronger tone to the music.

�When our earlier album was released, the band had been rushed,� said Shane Hickey. �We were forced to make the album in two days, which hurt the quality.�
�A lot of people hailed us as a joke band,� said Bryan Hickey. �It made everyone in the band mad. With �Science Faction,� we were allowed to take our time and use that criticism as inspiration. We ended up making the album darker than our last by far.�

The 15-track album is reminiscent of a classic Black Sabbath album. A majority of the tunes have a psychedelic metal feeling to them.
That�s just the beginning for the album. There are also many other styles exhibited. The second track �Lush & Co.� contains riffs that hearken back to surf guitar.

Not everything is perfect about the album, though. As with most psychedelic-style albums, there are tracks that seem like they go just a little too long. One example is the track �Dune.� Though �Dune� is an amazing display of band�s instrumental prowess, it clocks in at more than seven minutes and seems like it should end about two minutes earlier.

Overall, the band does exactly what it set out to do with �Science Faction.� To top it off, it manages to do it well. For a band consisting of five members who travel to all their concerts in a 1982 Ford Ambulance, all of whom are more than 28 years old and consider their music �just a hobby because it doesn�t pay the bills,� Volumen has managed to do more than some bands ever hope to.

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