The LAG-LORE is deep and rich so prepare accordingly...
history chronicles: table of contents photos coming soon!

Saratoga Origins
The Isla Vista Years, Part I
The Augusta, Georgia Experience
The Isla Vista Years, Part II
BLAG Across America
L.A.G. Today



Saratoga Origins: The L.A.G. Union/ One % Away Vs. Django

It all began in a tiny suburb of San Jose, nestled at the foot of the Santa Cruz Mountains known as Saratoga, California. It is believed that the first L.A.G. meeting may have been as early as 1983, during a second grade mediaeval jousting, playground romp, however they were not officially a band until 1989 when they all attended Redwood Junior High. In those days they called themselves One % Away (James Chung on keyboards, Matt West on drums, Dan Lebowitz on lead guitar, Steve Adams on Bass and Zach Gill on vocals and rhythm guitar.) Playing entirely covers, ranging from Billy Joel to Ozzy Osbourn and Del Shannon to Van Halen, they began to cultivate a unique sense of band interaction and improvisation that would later manifest itself into the musical phenomena known as the �Lag Spirit�.

In 1991 the band changed directions. They lost founding member James Chung, switched to original music and changed their name to Django. Their early compositions were a series of dramatic pop hard rock tunes that embodied the trauma of the post heavy metal Glam rock era with a newly discovered love for soul and jazz. They achieved moderate success, releasing a self-titled cassette and performing, while still underage, in the local San Jose club scene.

It was also around this time that L.A.G. began branching out musically. They joined the Saratoga High jazz band and jazz choir as both instrumentalists and vocalists and performed in various plays and musicals as both actors and musicians. Realizing the growth that comes from jamming with other musicians, they sometimes performed separately from one another in other rock bands including, A Tree Called Simon, Paragon, Saucy Jack, Mirage, Unkle Funkle and The Three Guys from Brooklyn. Many of the musicians in these groups would become integral members of later L.A.G. bands and projects. However, their most important musical discoveries were made not on a stage, but in the forests just outside of Saratoga. On numerous occasions L.A.G. and friends would wonder freely through the woods listening, singing and using sticks and rocks as percussion instruments. This ritual of music bonded its participants and cemented in L.A.G. a notion that music was something powerful and sacred. Back to the table of contents.



The Isla Vista Years, Part I: Life by the beach/ New music/ Changes

It was clear by 1993 that all four members of Django (Lebowitz, Adams, Gill and West) wanted to continue on their musical journey together. They chose the vibrant beach front college town of Isla Vista, just outside of Santa Barbara, California, as their next home for both its quality university (UCSB) and its notorious party culture.

Isla Vista proved to be the perfect gestation place for a young experimental rock band. The near by beach was a great source of inspiration while the constant parties meant that there was always a crowd to play for. By day they studied history, twentieth century music composition and ethnomusicology at the university and at night they entertained the children of Isla Vista. They also began experimenting with stage theatrics and the use of drugs and alcohol in conjunction with music.

From 1993-1996 Django (now pronouncing their name jango with a silent D) was immersed in the local music scene, performing sometimes seven night a week. They joined UCSBs jazz band, Middle East ensemble and Gospel choir as well as starting their own jazz combo, Magnum. Their sound began to change dramatically, as they began to reflect musically the things they were learning, academically, socially and spiritually. Realizing they wanted to make people dance, the songs became extended and more groove oriented. They began embarking on small tours of California and Oregon and released a CD, entitled Tabula Rasa, in the winter of 1995.

By the spring of 1996 Django parted ways with longtime friend and drummer Matt West. David Brogan (head master Isla Vista Music School) was Matt�s replacement. Brogan�s previous band Evil Farmer had been a huge influence on Django�s music, when they first arrived in Isla Vista, and his musical depth and showmanship proved to be a great addition to the band. Their sound began to further evolve with Dave and Zach sharing lead vocals and a whole new set of original compositions. However the Summer of 1996 would prove to be one of the most important growth periods in the band's history. Back to the table of contents.



The Augusta, Georgia Experience: The Highlander/ Amy Christian and The Godfather of Soul

In the summer of 1996, Django journeyed to Augusta, Georgia, to live with an old friend of Dave Brogan�s named Amy Christian. Amy was employed as a back up singer for James Brown and she needed someone to watch her house while she was on the road. After a series of bazaar gigs while driving across the country (Drag Queen Fashion show), Django arrived in Augusta at about 3:00 am on a warm June night. The Summer Olympics were being held in Atlanta, Georgia that year and the band believed they would have no problem finding gigs due to the influx of tourism there. They soon found out that they were wrong, most venues had been booked up for over a year.

Broke and a little nervous about their future they began calling clubs and bars in the local Augusta phone book. Every place was booked except for an old British pub known as the Highlander. The Highlander was in Augusta, but across the Georgia border on the South Carolina side, therefore they were required to abide by different laws concerning the sale of alcohol. In Georgia, bars closed at 2:00 am, in South Carolina they could stay open twenty-four hours a day except on Sundays. Django played their first set at the Highlander on a Wednesday night, starting at about 11:30 and ending just before sunrise. After a few more gigs they became the house band at the Highlander, playing there a few nights a week.

Before no time at all Django was drawing large crowds to all the local Augusta clubs. It seemed that the mysterious arrival of this band from California was a big deal to many Augustans. People would come to gigs bearing gifts of food, drink, art and paper bags full of fresh Georgia psychedelic mushrooms. Upon ingestion of the mushrooms the gigs were transformed into a montages of sound, color, hair and strange faces dissolving in and out of reality and fantasy. At one point it was believed Eric Clapton was sitting at the bar and that Steve�s arm was made out of metal.

The influence of the South on Django�s music was deep. The songs got more soulful and funky, the jamming got more experimental and the lyrics began to reflect the personal experiences of the band as they traveled. They also became aware of America�s rich musical heritage and began to explore Cajun, country, bluegrass, folk, funk and soul.

At the end of the summer just as they were preparing to return to California, Django was invited to meet with their life long musical hero and influence, Soul Brother #1, Mr. James Brown. Mr. Brown gave the boys his blessing and agreed to help them out later if they promised to finish their college education. He also taught them about the power of �The Cause.� With high spirits and a desire to infuse people with joy, laughter and funk, Django returned to California. Back to the table of contents.



The Isla Vista Years, Part II: IV Dogs/ Magnum Family Reunion/ Free Buffet/ The Cause

In the fall of 1996, the band was back in Isla Vista with plans to continue their education. Dave Brogan, decided to move to Seattle, Washington and L.A.G. decided to retire the name Django. The I.V. Dogs was L.A.G.�s next endeavor. Adorning outrageous costumes and playing long improvised acid-funk the dogs entertained crowds throughout the end of 96. With no real structure or even songs for that matter the Dogs fell apart shortly. In the winter of 1997, original Magnum jazz combo drummer Joshua Yaffa returned from Australia and Magnum resumed. The Magnum Jazz Combo, under the academic leadership of Jon Nathan (Director of the UCSB Big Band), achieved moderate success, performing at the Berkley Jazz Festival and at local jazz pubs. A spin off of the group the Magnum Family became equally popular. By the Fall of 1997 they released the infamous �Blue Tape Demo� and were opening for major touring acts such as acid jazz guitar virtuoso, Charlie Hunter.

However, the strict dance format became too musically confining for L.A.G.. They started playing gigs as just a trio, with Steve on upright bass, Zach on Accordion and Dan on Acoustic Guitar. Performing everything from bluegrass to mariachi. They found that this group was extremely versatile, mobile and relatively quiet. Because of their already extended musical past together, L.A.G. was able to draw from almost ten years worth of musical ideas. They named the group the Steve Adams Acoustic Buffet, but later in a state of revelation changed it to the L.A.G. Acoustic Buffet (Lebowitz, Adams and Gill in case you have been wondering this whole time).

Just towards the end 1997, Jon Nathan, L.A.G.�s jazz band instructor, approached them about starting a nine�piece funk band. At the time, the Magnum Family was temporarily on hold and the LAG Acoustic Buffet was just beginning to garner a small yet very loyal following. None the less they agreed to the project and with Nathan began busily composing horn parts for a five piece horn section. Originally the band was to be called Pig Farm. That was changed to the Sueno Research Institute, which only lasted about one gig. Then L.A.G. remembered the advice of James Brown, �You gotta have The Cause!� he�d told them.

They thought for a moment�Then they thought for another moment�Freedom�that�s a good cause�hmm�what kind of freedom�mental, physical, spiritual�the liberation of the human spirit�Yes that is it�prophecy by the comic priest �animal liberation in 1998�� they thought for another moment�and then band became known as The Animal Liberation Orchestra and the Free Range Horns, dedicated to the liberation of the human spirit.

By winter of 1998 the Animal Liberation Orchestra (A.L.O.) was ready to start giging. Their first few gigs were a series of weekly Thursday night benefit shows for the rain forest. With in months ALO became widely popular throughout the Santa Barbara area, releasing a CD in the spring of 97 entitled, The Animal Liberation Orchestra and the Free-Range Horns vs. LAG. The sheer size of the band however, made it difficult to tour, and L.A.G. decided it was time for them to hit the road again. Back to the table of contents.



BLAG Across America: Epic Adventures/ A Return to Augusta/ A Surprise in Isla Vista

In the summer of 1998, The BLAG Acoustic Buffet (LAG joined by percussionist and dancer Robert �B�inkley) embarked on another grass roots tour of the US in support of their CD, The Animal Liberation Orchestra and the Free Range Horns vs. LAG. The tour became known as BLAG Across America. Throughout the US audiences of all types marveled at and caught wind of the �BLAG sprit.

BLAG made it their personal goal, to make friends with everyone they could. In Minnesota, they played for a Danish Wedding. In Washington D.C. they met with their Senator and at a university in Oklahoma they marched into the library and performed for those who couldn�t make it to the show later. The band also reconnected with old relatives and friends, making visits to their parent�s birth-places. Half way through the six week journey they stopped off in Augusta, Georgia where they played two shows at The Highlander, had a metal sculpture commissioned and hung out with all of their old friends including the Drakleys, Amy Christian, Mushroom Richard and many more. They met with James Brown in an airport and he agreed to promote their album on his local radio station. From Georgia, BLAG continued, taking a tour of Grace Land, resting in New Orleans and hiking around the out skirts of the Grand Canyon.

Upon their arrival back in Isla Vista they found that their popularity had nearly doubled since their departure in the early summer and they sold out two nights at Maddy�s lounge in down town Santa Barbara. For a complete transcription of the BLAG Across America tour journals visit the BLAG Buffet site. Back to the table of contents.



L.A.G. Today:

1999 has already seen a great number of changes in the world of LAG. The year started off with a Magnum Family reunion at the Britannia Arms in Saratoga and the cyber space debut of www.lagmusic.com by those fine people at www.humanconnection.com.L.A.G. with bay area drummer, Shree Shyam Das, composed and recorded a soundtrack for Powers Philms new release One Size Fits All. A promotional tour for the film and sound track will follow in the spring of 1999.

A northern California version of the Animal Liberation Orchestra is also being put together. Many old Friends are becoming involved in this project, Ex IV Dogs Guitar Wizard Tak Naykamura has been running sound, Dave Brogan has been sitting in on Drums, keyboards and percussion, Bill Thompson tenor sax friend from the original Django has been sitting in as well and Jenna Dahm from Isla Vista has been handling some of the bands managerial issues.

Three new CD releases are scheduled for 1999 as well as a new light show, more stage theatrics and a dance troupe.

As far as we can tell things have really just gotten started...stay calm.