Johnny Socko
Encyclopedia
Johnny Socko was an American third wave ska band formed in Bloomington, Indiana
in 1990.
The band used to be on Asian Man Records
, but have since started their own record label, Triple R Records. They were known as a band that toured heavily, having performed over 2,000 shows since their inception, but are currently on hiatus. They performed their last concert on New Year's Eve
2002. One of their songs, "Full Trucker Effect" is used in its entirety as part of the introduction to the Bubba The Love Sponge
show on Sirius Satellite Radio
. The band takes its name from Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot, a 1960s Japan
ese action television show.
Michael "Trout" Wiltrout, the group's former vocalist, has since formed The Leisure Kings with Sean Baker, as well as providing lead vocals for the bands Mr. Sparkle and The Impalas. Joey Welch, the group's former guitarist, has since formed the Born Again Floozies (Formerly including Charlie Krone as well) and continues to work with the Las Vegas Body Snatchers. Chris Smail, Charlie Krone, and Matt Wilson now play as a punk/powerpop band called Coolidge. Saxophonist Josh Silbert currently plays in the Impalas with Wiltrout and fronts the electronic/experimental band ESW. Eric Evans was the original trumpet player and toured and recorded with the band for the first four years. Before that, he toured internationally with Ringling Brother's Barnum Bailey Circus and on cruise ships. Eric currently plays with a number of current projects including funk/soul outfit The Hollywood Getdown and fronts his funk/jazz group The Raoul Duke Jazz All-Stars.
The original lineup of the band reunited for one night to open the 2009 Broad Ripple Music Fest on October 16, 2009. The performance was very well received and received the top honor in the Indianapolis Star's Metromix reader's poll: http://indianapolis.metromix.com/music/article/top-10-local-shows/1698142/content
Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County in the southern region of the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 80,405 at the 2010 census....
in 1990.
The band used to be on Asian Man Records
Asian Man Records
Asian Man Records is a small, DIY record label run by Mike Park in Monte Sereno, California. Park started a record label and began releasing music in 1989 under the name Dill Records, with the Asian Man label established May 1996.-Artists:...
, but have since started their own record label, Triple R Records. They were known as a band that toured heavily, having performed over 2,000 shows since their inception, but are currently on hiatus. They performed their last concert on New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
2002. One of their songs, "Full Trucker Effect" is used in its entirety as part of the introduction to the Bubba The Love Sponge
Bubba the Love Sponge
Todd Alan Clem is an American radio personality better known by his Legal name Bubba the Love Sponge Clem. He is the host of The Bubba the Love Sponge Show on various Cox Radio and Beasley Broadcast Group stations, formerly on Sirius XM Howard 101, as well as on RadioIO.-Early career and the...
show on Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
. The band takes its name from Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot, a 1960s Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese action television show.
Michael "Trout" Wiltrout, the group's former vocalist, has since formed The Leisure Kings with Sean Baker, as well as providing lead vocals for the bands Mr. Sparkle and The Impalas. Joey Welch, the group's former guitarist, has since formed the Born Again Floozies (Formerly including Charlie Krone as well) and continues to work with the Las Vegas Body Snatchers. Chris Smail, Charlie Krone, and Matt Wilson now play as a punk/powerpop band called Coolidge. Saxophonist Josh Silbert currently plays in the Impalas with Wiltrout and fronts the electronic/experimental band ESW. Eric Evans was the original trumpet player and toured and recorded with the band for the first four years. Before that, he toured internationally with Ringling Brother's Barnum Bailey Circus and on cruise ships. Eric currently plays with a number of current projects including funk/soul outfit The Hollywood Getdown and fronts his funk/jazz group The Raoul Duke Jazz All-Stars.
The original lineup of the band reunited for one night to open the 2009 Broad Ripple Music Fest on October 16, 2009. The performance was very well received and received the top honor in the Indianapolis Star's Metromix reader's poll: http://indianapolis.metromix.com/music/article/top-10-local-shows/1698142/content
Studio albums
- Bovaquarium (1994, B.I.B.)
- Oh I Do Hope It's Roast Beef (1996, B.I.B.)
- Full Trucker Effect (1997, Asian Man RecordsAsian Man RecordsAsian Man Records is a small, DIY record label run by Mike Park in Monte Sereno, California. Park started a record label and began releasing music in 1989 under the name Dill Records, with the Asian Man label established May 1996.-Artists:...
) - Quatro (1999, Scarab)
- Johnny Socko (2002, Triple R)
Current members
- Joshua Silbert (saxophone, vocals)
- Dylan Wissing (drums)
- Matt Wilson (bass, vocals)
- Chris Smail (guitar, vocals)
- Demian Hostetter (trumpet, vocals)
External links
- Johnny Socko's Home Page
- Johnny Socko's Myspace Page
- http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/johnny_socko/artist.jhtmlJohnny Socko on VH1.comVH1VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
] - Triple R Records
- The Leisure Kings' Official Site
- The Leisure Kings' Myspace Page