The Resevior Tips

Interview and article by Molly.
If offending people were considered an art-form, The Resevior Tips would be the Michelangelos of punk-rock. A punk rock hybrid combining influences such as old school punk, skate punk, 80’s and 90’s punk, English punk, thrash and metal, The Resevior Tips’ sound is distinctly theirs, while still undeniably punk rock. Bands such as Bad Religion, No FX, Battalion of Saints, The Ramones, and oi music, along with genius

The Resevior Tips
guitar heroes, most notably Dimebag Darrall Abbott, feed inspiration into this talented DIY local San Diego band. 

Bassist/singer Mike Woods and guitarist/singer Rowland Bluntz from Chula Vista met in high school, and have been toying with the idea of starting a band project together for years. In 2003, drummer Melvin from Kearny Mesa met up with Rowland through mutual friends. Melvin had been played oi music in bands such as Woodshed, The Untold, Storm Section, and FFF. Mike strummed bass for local bands 39 Dead, Too Far Gone, and WNP. Rowland had been busy playing metal guitar in Tore Back. By 2004, Mike and Rowland had been playing together at local shows with Rowland’s band Tore Back and Mike’s band WNP. “The shows that Dave and MFH Productions put on every Thursday at Second Wind were a great meeting place for musicians and a huge inspiration to us… Dave helped us out a lot when we were first starting out,” says Mike. The two regularly attended the MFH shows, and the inevitable finally happened. The two got together at Rowland’s house with a few beers, and began to write songs. They needed a drummer, and Rowland had Melvin in mind. Their influences combined to give birth to the offensive, true-to-punk Resevior Tips. Melvin recalls, “Rowland asked me if I wanted to play drums. The Tips started out as a fuck-around project, and people enjoyed it.” 

Quite a success for its humble beginnings as a “fuck-around project,” The Tips have built a local punk resume that includes opening for bands such as MDC, the Smut Peddlers, Agent Orange, the Lower Class Brats, Clit 45 and Wrecking Crew, as well as sharing the stage with many other local San Diego punk bands. Brian Francis Adams, singer for local punk band Solis, says about the Tips: “The Resevior Tips combine humor, politics and sex, mixed with metal, rock, punk and hardcore. It’s offensive- they talk about problems, comedy… It’s all about getting a response. That’s what they do.” Sex is definitely present in their themes; a second glance at their name and symbol says it all. The Resevior Tips symbol is the work of the brother of Bones of the Lower Class Brats- it’s a condom wearing trademark combat boots with french-tickler liberty-spiked hair… a reservoir tip is the end of the condom which is pinched to catch semen, and Rowland came up with their name as a joke on the movie “Reservoir Dogs.” I’m told their name is spelled differently on purpose. Anything to do with sperm has become common on flyers and on their webpage. Bassist Mike calls the Tips’ style “mostly lighthearted and funny,” and Rowland adds that their music is “about having fun… good music that’s fun. The Resevior Tips are about having a good time, even if it’s at our expense.”

Too Far Gone singer Chris says about the Tips: “Fuck, it’s good to see some funny, thrash-style punk. Their last few shows have been some of the best I’ve seen! I’m waiting for the CD!” San Diego won’t have to wait much longer though, because a Tips CD is in the makings. The CD will feature 16 of their own songs- 7 new and the old songs mastered, as well as a few

The Resevior Tips
creative covers. Backup vocals from friends, beer, and buds made the recording experience a memorable one for the Tips members. Rowland recalls, “Alex- the guy who recorded us- is the man. Recording was so much fun- we got a lot out of the time for as disorganized as this band is. It was a good learning experience.” He also notes proudly that he used his very first amp to record, and recorded the very first riff he ever learned on it, as an intro to one of their covers. True to their offensive nature, the tracks will include songs such as “Meat Curtains,” “Mayonnaise Girl,” and “Porn Star.” Drummer Melvin says his favorite song to play is a toss-up between “What Have We Learned,” which takes a political tone, and “Dead Bugs,” which gets its lyrics from a journal entry bassist Mike wrote in kindergarten. Rowland favors “Eighth Grade Beef” because he says it gets the crowd dancing. It tells a hilarious story about a guy who is still upset with bassist Mike after an incident that occurred when he was in eighth grade. Mike’s favorite on the album is “1904.” This song is “all about the local bands we grew up listening to or are currently playing with. It gives shot-outs to bands in the local scene. 

The Tips are all about trying to help out other bands, and vice-versa.” Helping out other bands is a side effect of the Tips’ main goal: having fun. With almost 2 years behind them, The Resevior Tips have made some great memories. Drummer Melvin laughs heartily when he recalls how some of the songs were written, with Mike and Rowland in the studio together. “The ideas that come out of Mike’s and Rowland’s thoughts for songs are hilarious- like a new one Mike had about parking in the LBC.” Mike has recently relocated to Long Beach to finish school, but despite the distance and lack of practices, The Tips manage to still book shows in both Long Beach and San Diego. Mike remembers coming up with the lyrics for “Porn Star” in the studio: “Rowland said one of the lines, and we thought it was hilarious. Then we just started saying funny shit and laughing, and it became a song.” Rowland’s favorite Tips memory comes from a party they played at a PB block party. The show was shut down by an apartment manager. People who had been watching from across the street said that The Tips could come over to their apartments and play, and The Tips laughed at the manager who had shut them down as they played their set. That was the first time, Rowland remembers, that they were “Resevior tipped,” when someone tipped the band for playing a good set. 

In addition to the anticipated release of their CD, The Resevior Tips also have merchandise available: t-shirts bearing their logo are $10 each, and they also have buttons. Drummer Melvin comments “I hope The Tips go on as long as they can,” and it seems that not even bassist Mike’s relocation will keep them from continuing to play. Their next show is scheduled in Long Beach at Fern’s on August 5th, and they will return to play an all-ages show with D.I. at DiPiazza’s on September 3rd. A San Diego date is in the works. If you haven’t seen them, do yourself a favor and go out to one of their shows- The Tips are making local punk-rock history, so you won’t want to miss them. Check them out on their site: www.myspace.com/thereseviortips and keep an eye out for the release of their CD. Warning: if you don’t like to laugh, and you can’t appreciate real punk rock, this band is not for you. Says Melvin, “If people can’t see the humor in shit, they can all fuck off.”

mp3s: http://www.myspace.com/thereseviortips (Warning: Material on the Resevior Tips myspace page is not safe for work, school, or parents)

Check out the Resevior Tips live August 26 at Scolari's (21+)!



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