Geoff Wilbur's Renegade Newsletter has reviewed several Disarray demos and independent releases over the years, and we're proud to see this straight-up metal band achieve a strong level of success on their latest release, the mighty A Lesson in Respect, on Eclipse Records (23 Ward Avenue, Butler, NJ 07405; http://www. eclipserecords.com).
Eclipse president Chris Poland notes that A Lesson in Respect debuted on the Album Network’s Aggro chart as a Top 5 most-added release; of 400 stations serviced, half put Disarray into regular rotation during full-time format and radio shows. And, in addition to features in publications such as Renegade, the band will be profiled in the February issue of Hit Parader.
Really, though, the music is just that good, and it’s played by one of the tightest metal bands around: Disarray is vocalist/guitarist Chuck Bonnett, bassist Joe "Hooch" Dotson, and drummer Tony Moseley. Bonnett states, "the main element in our music is a strong hook and a lot of aggression." Disc highlights include "Piss" and "Mindless," as well as a tribute-with-a-twist: the southern rock anthem "Freebird" -- Disarray is from Nashville, after all. Tennessee. The Capitol of Country, USA.
So you have to ask: what is the Nashville metal scene like? "A few years ago Nashville was killer, with lots of cool bands and 4 or 5 hundred people in a club to see bands play." Though Nashville’s not what it used to be, Bonnett believes "people shouldn’t be surprised that a metal band like Disarray can emerge from Nashville. We always get slack because we’re from Tennessee, but the fact is Disarray has killer chemistry between members and we can hang with any band in a live situation. We did "Freebird" as a joke, making fun of ourselves. We are big Skynyrd fans, though, and it’s no disrespect to them. We just hate rednecks, and to desecrate their anthem was a lot of fun."
When asked about the next Disarray CD, Bonnett says, "We always try to stay ahead of the game, so I can tell you that the next CD is already written. It will be 11 totally new songs, and we are recutting [an early Disarray track] "Bleed" because that song stomps ass, and we never had the money to push it to radio. We are thinking of calling the album Depths of the Wreckage. Expect the hardest hitting Disarray recording ever."
In the meantime, however, there is one thing to look forward to: in early 2000, Eclipse Records will release the highly anticipated Pantera tribute CD, Panther. It will surely rock and features Disarray covering the classic "Cowboys from Hell." Bonnett says, "‘Cowboys’ was one of my favorite tunes. We tuned it a lot lower and kinda added some different beats in there. All in all it turned out pretty good."
So check out Disarray. They rock. A Lesson in Respect is a very good disc and is available at all major music chains. Seemingly always on the road, the band has many dates scheduled throughout the U.S. during the rest of ’99.