The Vulpines

Sometimes less-than-ethical means are required to make it big.

University freshmen David "Tuna" Fortuna and Dan Hesketh don't seem to mind. Sitting in the kitchen on the seventh floor of Creswell, the two contemplate their diabolical plans for the future of their newborn band, The Vulpines.

"We need to go molest the guy at the Georgia Theatre," said Fortuna.

"Molest? Harass?" said Hesketh.

"I'm going to go with molest," Fortuna said.

"I mean, whatever works," said Hesketh. "If that's what it takes."

Fortuna reconsidered.

"Maybe tantalize?"

Hesketh said they are willing to do whatever it takes to get their name out and establish a fan base.

"Really what we're doing for this band is world domination," said Fortuna, a religion major from Atlanta. "Don't tell people that."

Aside from plans to form an alliance with China, The Vulpines hope to start playing regularly around Athens, Hesketh said.

"I would love to play bigger venues, smaller venues, any venue. I would just like to hit every stage I can," said Hesketh, a pre-business major from Kennesaw.

The Vulpines will get its chance tonight at the Caledonia Lounge, its first show as a complete band.

The band was started by freshman vocalist and guitarist Stone Irvin, a pre-journalism major from Atlanta. Fortuna first met Irvin at an open mic at Hot Corner, where he offered to play bass with Irvin.

The two played a benefit show in the Reed quad before reaching their current lineup. Hesketh met Irvin by chance and started playing drums for the band. Fortuna's former high school band-mate and friend Alastair Steward then joined on lead guitar to complete the lineup.

"We've got a pretty wide variety (of personalities)," Irvin said. "But I think that, at least as far as I can see, our personality differences aren't going to work out negatively, but instead work out positively for the music." rvin provides the stability for the band's creative process as the primary songwriter.

"Looking at different languages, and even the similarities between Latin and English and the way they're used in poetry, that really helped me out a lot," said Irvin, describing his song writing process.

Fortuna said Irvin has been building up a stock of lyrics and chord progressions since high school.

"He has this notebook, which is like the playbook of ages for him," he said.

Fortuna and Hesketh also both praised Irvin's ability to write quality new songs quickly and often.

Irvin said he wants to take rock music back to its roots in the '60s and '70s.

"There's a certain feeling in the way (older bands) wrote, and an energy they used when they wrote that's a lot different than people use today," he said.

The band is optimistic about its music, even though it has only been together for three months.

"I think as a musician, the best goal you can have is playing music that you'd listen to yourself," Fortuna said.

By Seth McKelvey - The Red and Black

Newly located to town from Atlanta, The Vulpines play a guitar-heavy brand of rock that comes across a lot like the American-influenced British rock bands of the early '70s. - Flagpole