Special Ed

In April of 1995, Trey and Lyle began a collaborative songwriting experiment. A band of three had been assembled by Trey and they were seeking a voice. Lyle was in touch with the spirit Merkus Alkus, who sang. Thus began Muzzleloader.

Gigging commenced immediately and within three weeks of the initial meeting, these musicians were closing down Oklahoma's finest bars and basements.Tired of the cover band scene and not getting respect in Oklahoma, Trey, Lyle and Paul(the groups bassist at the time) headed west to pursue their vision. Shortly after moving the troupe to Southern California, Yasha Filisov joined as the replacement drummer. Yasha brought with him years of study and session work experience, soon after, the band began playing shows across the O.C./L.A. areas: from Lake Forest to downtown Los Angeles; Fullerton to Ventura; Van Nuys to Newport Beach.In 1997, amid interpersonal problems, the group disbanded and became another casualty of the fledgling bands on the scene. In the Fall 1998, Yasha and Trey got the urge to pick up the pieces and carry on. They reenlisted Lyle on vocals and in the spring of 1999, Daren Burns, also a veteran of various projects and recordings, was recruited by Yasha to be the group's bassist. Burns brought the expertise needed to continue with the rich tradition of live shows and interesting songwriting.After several months of playing various venues across the Southern California area, recording began for the upcoming self-produced debut album entitled "The not so secret lies of Bobby Scorpio" which will be completed in May of 2001. After the release, Muzzleloader will be back to playing live in support of their release, and to win over new fans.


Group members:

Trey Creager- Guitars, Mercus Alkus- Vocals, Daren Burns- Basses, Yasha Philips- Drums and Percussion


Musical influences:

Tool, Clutch, The Smiths, Peter Gabriel, Ben Fold's Five, AC/DC, Duran Duran, Weather Report, Alice In Chains, Devo, Bob Marley, The Who, Frank Zappa, Rush, REM, The Cure, Public Enemy, Run DMC, Adam Ant, Slayer, John Coltrane, Sonic Youth, Cheap Trick, King Crimson, Miles Davis, Henry Rollins plus many, many others.


Listen.com review:

Brash, guitar-heavy rock with distorted low-end riffs spilling out beneath grungy vocal melodies. Tight and confident.

by Will Y.



Orange County Register Review:

MuzzleLoader

"The Not So Secret Lies of Bobby Scorpio" is the 12-track debut from MuzzleLoader, which boasts a lineup of players from Orange, Los Angeles and Riverside counties.

The CD is a triumph of those who appreciate the joys of stripped down and largely uncluttered hard rock - think of a more modern version of AC/DC or the Cult.

Indeed, "AD" captures the feel of those two band's most accessible rockers by finding a crunchy groove and driving it home. However, the quartet isn't afraid to venture outside a one-trick formula, even touching on funk ("Cataclysm") and pop ("The California Contract").

MuzzleLoader also abandons its usually straight-forward rock for a welcome trip through psychedelics on "estrogen."

For more information, visit the band's official Web site (www.muzzleloader.org), or email the group at muzzleloadermusic@juno.com.

You might enjoy if you like: Stone Temple Pilots, the Cult

By ROBERT KINSLER