Bonedome

Bonedome—based in Dallas, Texas, produced THINKTANKUBATOR consisting of twelve tunes to deliver to their audience to mak them bound to be salivating for their next helping. With all tracks having being solely or co-written by the band’s vocalist and bassist Allan Hayslip, this eclectic album rightly demonstrates his serious yet attentive approach to songwriting. Of these dozen songs, Slow Jesus Xing makes the strongest impression. Particular attention should be paid to the lyrics as they provide an insight into the marvellous mind of the band. The remainder of the record is produced with some excellent instrumental accompaniment but on the concluding tune you get a glimpse into the diversity of the band. The song Custody Lullabye innocently delivers subtle accompaniment that showcases the band’s delicate and sensitive side. This band might not be to everyone’s liking but for those who prefer their music to be diverse with an impressive arrangement this will certainly be ideal listening. Russell Hill - Russell Hill - Maverick (Country) Magazine UK

Allan Hayslip’s Bonedome delivers fantastic alternative rock on their debut, Thinktankubator. The band has a sound that draws on modern rock acts like Interpol and The Editors but is dripping with the influences of more classic artists such as Bauhaus, Psychedelic Furs, and Love & Rockets.

Thinktankubator is special because it’s an alternative rock album that has consistently strong songwriting throughout. So many of the alt rock bands today have a handful of inspired moments sandwiched in between real filler stuff, but Hayslip is a talented musician — classically trained before turning to the dark side, and his real musical talent comes through in both the quality songwriting and the performances delivered by his band.
The songs are engaging, melodic, melancholy, dark and brooding… all the right stuff for the disillusioned youth of today as well as their parents who grew up on this stuff. Oh no — parents and kids sharing another musical bonding experience! Maybe they’ll go out and get tattoos and body piercings together while cranking this stuff.

Great alternative guitar work is found throughout the recording, and no self-respecting alternative rock band is complete without the occasion appearance of some baritone guitar riffs and some distortion on the bass lines, too. The band does a nice job of delivering classic alternative rock vibe without getting bogged down in keyboards — this is guitar-driven alt rock, and the band does a great job of it.

Vocally, Hayslip embodies a combination of Paul Banks, Peter Murphy, David Bowie. He’s low and brooding, but has a great penchant for harmonies. Lyrics come from a suitably dark place, which is always fun when paired with catchy and sometimes happy-sounding music as you’ll find on Thinktankubator. That dichotomy is just part of what makes this CD fun. Good stuff. - Scott Kahn - MusicPlayers.Com

NOTE: 7/10
Les amateurs de David Bowie, notamment ceux de la période des années 80, devraient se pencher attentivement sur ce projet à l’imprononçable dénomination. Certes, dans les registres des aigus, les vocalises d’Allan Hayslip sont sans doute moins acérées que celles du bien connu et tonitruant rocker britannique, mais Bonedome s’en adjuge indéniablement l’esprit rebelle et caverneux. En tout cas, toute comparaison mise à part, cette solide (et nombreuse) équipe d’outre-atlantique ne renie certainement pas la souche anglo-saxonne de son inspiration profonde.

Les riffs de guitare relèvent parfois de méthodes et de phrasés issus de la vieille école du rock, ce qui n’empêche nullement l’interprétation de les assumer pleinement, en les exprimant avec un franc touché constant, totalement dénué de retenue. L’enveloppe sonore est généreuse, la tonalité homogène, et si les mélodies sont parfois construites sur des mises en boucles répétitives, elles sont empreintes d’un caractère bien trempé. En bref, pas de réel défaut à la cuirasse de ce "Thinktankubator", si ce n’est que l’inspiration évoquée précédemment et qualifiable de clairvoyante pour les uns pourrait tout aussi bien émerger d'un semblant de plagiat pour les autres.

Petit tour d’horizon ? Si vos oreilles ont besoin d’un rock énergique, sans fard ni déguisement, elles trouveront le nécessaire avec des titres comme 'Sandman', 'Fade Away', 'Steven' ou 'Better' ; le feeling ad hoc en découle immédiatement. Pour ceux qui préfèrent la confortable insouciance de réflexions musicales à la fois épaisses et aériennes, tantôt planantes tantôt dansantes, installez-vous au fond de votre canapé, augmentez le volume de votre hi-fi, et savourez 'Girl One', 'Slow Jesus Xing' ou 'I Can Lose You' – vous y retrouverez sûrement un (petit) goût de "Tonight" (1984), ou plus récemment de l'excellent "Heathen" de 2002, deux des opus musicalement civilisés de notre éminent David (comment oublier le chatoyant et pénétrant 'God Only Knows', sur "Tonight" ?). Enfin, pour l’auditeur en quête du côté obscur, rampant ou torturé, qui pourrait également caractériser le style du dénommé rocker, il y a de quoi faire un petit bout de chemin avec 'Eraser', 'Easy', 'Red Flags R Trouble' ou 'The Other One' ; il s’agit en fait d’une face cachée : elle est plus prégnante que pourrait le laisser penser une écoute distraite. Le programme s’achève avec la ballade 'Custody Lullabye', assez classique et sans prétention d’excellence, mais qui clôture l’album avec justesse.
Pas d’égarement en vaines redondances. "Thinktankubator" est sobre mais lucide, concis (42 minutes environ) et efficace.

Alors, pour ou contre ce projet Bonewidomien ? Pour votre serviteur, la sentence est entendue : nos américains squattent la cantine du grand David, mais proposent bien autre chose qu’une pâle copie de son œuvre.

Chronique rédigée par Realmean parue le 23.05.2011 - musicwaves.fr (FRANCE) by Realmean

Bonedome—based in Dallas, Texas, produced THINKTANKUBATOR consisting of twelve tunes to deliver to their audience to mak them bound to be salivating for their next helping. With all tracks having being solely or co-written by the band’s vocalist and bassist Allan Hayslip, this eclectic album rightly demonstrates his serious yet attentive approach to songwriting. Of these dozen songs, Slow Jesus Xing makes the strongest impression. Particular attention should be paid to the lyrics as they provide an insight into the marvellous mind of the band. The remainder of the record is produced with some excellent instrumental accompaniment but on the concluding tune you get a glimpse into the diversity of the band. The song Custody Lullabye innocently delivers subtle accompaniment that showcases the band’s delicate and sensitive side. This band might not be to everyone’s liking but for those who prefer their music to be diverse with an impressive arrangement this will certainly be ideal listening. - Russell Hill at Maverick Country Magazine (UK)

This is a solid entry for quirky indie rock. Thinktankubator is a collection of devil-may-care, Bowie-esque rock that raises the weird quotient several degrees as the singer croons about his innumerable girlfriends, Jesus crossings, red flags, and general domestic distress.

Bonedome employs several guitarists to create a multi-textured sound; however no more than two guitarists are on any given track. Main guitarist Ed McMahon creates a steady rhythm whereas the other guitarists assist with lots of warbly delay effects and crunch. Guitar solos are scattered throughout, but they are timid afterthoughts, possessing no true distinction.

The biggest appeal of this album lies in the sarcastic, off-the-wall lyrics. Strange words and puns abound, and you get a strong sense that the musicians are really as bizarre as they seem. The music itself is theatrical, yet restrained and sounds like it was made by a band that has not yet completely hit its stride. (7/10) - Daniel Walker at Maelstrom.Nu

"Great riffs, vocals that combine all together are just something this guys from Texas bring us. Songs like "Fade Away" and "Can I Loose You" are definitely two tracks that well show this band's talent." - R.J. Frometa, Vents Magazine

This is one jumpy jived up Sandman that takes us on our journey, maybe not the most serene of dreams perhaps but full of sparkling intrigue and that kind of refined chaos that the best sweet nightmares should have.

Now imagine this, that in an alternate universe, Bowie actually succeeded with Tin Machine, that instead of white suits and an 80s sheen, he found a Tv on the Radio and shoved it into a grunge house party, called all the punks, stole that nervous twitch right from under the Hold Steady and OH you are about half way there.

Because in spite of the uncanny thin white duke voice and other much talked about influences/inspirations this band carries their own weight, their own soul baggage, their own fire, anger and hatfulls of hope.

‘he ain’theavy, but he is fat and American, but the girls still love him’

well…

The band doesn’t’ sound fat and their love is complicated, one layer of tough flirting folded into another layer of wry observation, mixed well with a spoonful of desire.

Catch the´essence of mid afternoon FM and late evening AM radio waves and you have the beginnings of the knowledge that makes these songs shine.

There are elements of self destruction within the stories, and even the most fragile of the tunes that could be, would be, ballads have something dirty and shifting and raw at their core.

Perhaps´these are cowboy songs for men going to war, maybe these are space epics for the illusive alternative office worker..

All I know is that the band skips defining and that is a very good thing indeed

http://www.bonedome.net/ - Martin Smit, NBT Music Project (Germany)

Jag har för länge sen tappat räkningen på hur många gånger jag lyssnat på hela – eller delar av – Thinktankubator. Det grämer mig inte längre att jag inte kan komma ihåg låtarna kort efter att skivans speltid är nådd. Jag vill lyssna mer i alla fall. Troligen kommer de tolv låtarna allt mer utkristallisera sig och stå mer på egna ben. I nuläget är skivan mest en helhet som inte vill sluta locka mig, som bjuder på lite mer motstånd än vad jag vanligen brukar uthärda. Där Allan Hayslips sköna röst, mörka texter och sköna rock i trakterna kring David Bowie och Elvis Costello men ändå inte riktigt bara fortsätter att växa för varje lyssning.

Men vad är Bonedome för ett bandnamn egentligen? Tordes knappt googla på namnet av rädsla för att snubbla in på någon suspekt tysk (ja, troligen tysk) site där ingen har så mycket kläder på sig och där det kramas riktigt hårt om man ska uttrycka sig som Bamse när han förklarade hur syskon kommer till. - Ikon magazine (Sweden) - ikon1931 - Roger Bengtsson

Met Bonedome staan er acht muzikanten op het podium, namelijk duivel doet al Alan Hayslip (zang, bas en productie), Chad Stockslager (keyboards), Gerald Iragorri (drums) en maar liefst vier gitaristen: Edward McMahon, Gregg Pickett, Colin Boyd en Jonathan Lacey. Ze zijn allen afkomstig uit de streek van Dallas, Texas.

De grote verdienste van Bonedome is wel dat ze een heel eigen sound trachten te creëren en daar nog voor het grootste gedeelte in slagen ook.
Op nummers als ‘Easy, ‘Red Flags R Trouble’ en vooral ‘Steven’ doen ze mij ergens aan David Bowie denken.
‘I Can Lose You’ is dan anderzijds een rockballade in de beste Texaanse traditie. “Houston, we have a little problem…” zingen de jongens van Bonedome. Enige humor is hen niet vreemd en ze houden de Amerikaanse samenleving graag een spiegel voor zoals in het ook al Texaans klinkende ‘Slow Jesus Xing’. “He ain’t heavy, he’s fat and American but the girls still love him.” De sterkte van Bonedome ligt voornamelijk in de uitstekende teksten.
‘Girl One’ is een valabele rocker, maar het absolute hoogtepunt houdt Bonedome voor het einde met het prachtige meerstemmig gezongen wiegeliedje ‘Custody Lullabye’.
Waren alle tracks van dit niveau geweest dan zat er een vijf in. Nu is ‘Thinktankubator’ van Bonedome daarom nog geen slechte plaat. Texas is alive and well!

Ivan Van Belleghem (3 tot 4) - KeysAndChords.Com - Ivan Belleghem

Allan Hayslip is de geestelijke vader van de uit het Amerikaanse Dallas, Texas afkomstige garagerockband ‘Bonedome’. Hij schrijft de teksten en de de muziek voor de songs, hij zingt ze zelf in, hij speelt elektrische gitaar en basgitaar en hij stond ook in voor de productie van het nieuwe album van de formatie dat onder de merkwaardige titel “Thinktanktubator” op de markt is gekomen. Daarnaast fungeert hij ook nog eens als boekingsagent en contactpersoon voor de buitenwereld.

Het genre dat gehanteerd wordt voor de twaalf nummers op dit album is dus duidelijk gitaarrock maar met de nodige aandacht voor een herkenbare melodie zonder echt in de richting van symfonische rock af te glijden. Zijn muzikale maatjes in de opnamestudio waren drummer Gerald Iragorri en gitarist Ed McMahon met enkele gastmuzikanten voor extra gitaarwerk en keyboards.

De geluidsmuur wordt in deze 12 nummers nooit echt gesloopt en daarmee kunnen ze de interesse bij ondergetekende noise-vrezer blijven opwekken. Vergelijkingen met bands als ‘The Pixies’ and ‘The Cure’ liggen dan ook voor de hand. Bij de ons best bevallende nummers rekenen wij “Girl One”, de rustigere tracks “Slow Jesus Xing” en “Eraser”, het Beatlesque “I Can Lose You”, “Red Flagd R Trouble” en het stevig rockende “Better”.

De stem van zanger Allan Hayslip lijkt in een paar nummers sterk op die van een jonge David Bowie maar de gebrachte muziek staat toch wat verder verwijderd van Bowie’s werk. “Thinktankubator” is een behoorlijke plaat in een genre dat niet echt tot mijn favoriete muziek pleegt te behoren, maar daarbuiten toch op een vrij brede publieke belangstelling kan rekenen.

(valsam)
“Though not situated in my direct area of interest, the melodic rock songs on the album ‘Thinktankubator’ by Allan Hayslip’s band ‘Bonedome’ from Dallas will appeal to a broad interest from a guitar rock loving audience.”
– www.rootstime.be

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GOOGLE TRANSLATION:

Allan Hayslip is the spiritual father of the American from Dallas, Texas garage rock band coming 'Bone Dome'. He writes the lyrics and music for the songs he sings them himself, he plays electric guitar and bass and he was also responsible for producing the new album by the band under the curious title "Thinktanktubator on the market has come. In addition he also serves as a booking agent and contact the outside world.

The genre that is used for the twelve songs on this album is clearly guitar but with due attention to a familiar melody without really towards symphonic rock sliding. His musical buddies were in the recording studio drummer Gerald Iragorri and guitarist Ed McMahon with guest musicians for additional guitars and keyboards.

The sound wall is 12 songs that never really scrapped and thus they can be interested in signing vrezer continue to generate noise. Comparisons to bands like The Pixies' and 'The Cure' are therefore obvious. In our best laboring numbers we count "One Girl", the quieter tracks "Slow Jesus Xing" and "Eraser", the Beatlesque "I Can Lose You," "Red Flagd R Trouble" and the heavy rocking "Better".

The voice of singer Allan Hayslip seems a few songs similar to that of a young David Bowie, but the music is placed somewhat further away from Bowie's work. "Thinktankubator" is a decent album in a genre that is not really my favorite music tends to belong, but outside it in a relatively broad public interest can count.

(Valsam)
"Though not directly Situated in my area of ??interest, the melodic rock songs on the album Thinktankubator 'by Allan Hayslip's band" Bone Dome "from Dallas-meaning appeal to a broad interest from a guitar rock loving audience."
- Www.rootstime.be - http://www.rootstime.be

Divatos kifejezéssel élve garázs-rockot játszik a basszusgitáros-énekes, Allan Hayslip álal vezetett Bonedome együttes. A csapat bemutatkozó korongja a Thinktankubator címet kapta. A repertoár 42 perces musorido mellett 12 számból áll – valamennyit a zenekarvezeto jegyzi szerzoként. Nem igazán „falrobbantó” a produkció, de ennek ellenére súlyosak a gitárok. A tételek többsége középtempós, sot akadnak kifejezetten belassult számok is. Ilyen például a lemez közepérol az Eraser.

Annak ellenére, hogy nem egy „zúzós” albumról van szó az olyan számokból, mint pl. a Sandman, a Fade Away, a Steven és a Better rendesen árad az energia. Az utóbb említett két track egyben a repertoár leggyorsabb kompozíciójának számít. A kínálatban szereplo felvételek szinte mindegyike más és más zenekari felállás mellett készült. Fix embereknek a zenekarvezeto mellett csak a dobos Gerald Iragorri és a gitáros Ed McMahon számítanak.

Összességében elmondható, hogy a Bonedome egy elég ígéretes koronggal köszönt be a lemezpiacra és ezért kíváncsian várjuk a folytatást. - Czékus Mihály at HiFiCity.Com (Hungary)

Bonedome is the musical party of Allan Hayslip´s postrock adventures, the 2009 album "Thinktankubator" sounds like if Kurt Cobain and David Bowie would´ve collaborated in the early 90´s. Imagine these two listening to albums with Failure and Radiohead, then you might get the picture of how Bonedome is best described. Odd harmony changes and a bit powerpop-ish with a psychedelic touch. If glam/grunge was a genre, then Bonedome belong there perfectly fine. This album is uneven however but the good songs saves it from sinking, "The other one", "Steven" and "Better" are all on the 2nd half of the record but no doubt the best stuff here. - Kaj Roth at Melodic.Net (Sweden)

Forget about March Madness, Junior’s Cave’s music page (Music Now) has its own March Madness with a ton of great music spotlights that we know our readers will enjoy! This next spotlight with Allan Hayslip of BONEDOME certainly adds to the music magic that our publication has become know for these days. Hayslip reveals his passion for music and what he hopes to accomplish with his bid to get his music across to the masses. Here is our online conversation in its entirety for your reading pleasure.

Isaac: It’s an amazing time to be a DIY artist/performer/band/musician. What do you enjoy the most about being an indie performer?

Allan: I'm totally independent to make the music I want to make, including occasionally some music that might have a little trouble finding an audience—there's no pressure to compromise. Of course that kind of independence from mainstream market forces also makes it hard for us to garner any mainstream economic benefits, but so far it's been a reasonable trade-off.

Isaac: If you had an opportunity to sign with a major label, would you sign now knowing you may have to give up some of what you have build up over the years about you in the process?

Allan: Ha, maybe, but they might withdraw their offer after hearing my terms. Most of the traditional major label roles are kind of obsolete. We really don't need them for the production/manufacturing money...those costs have necessarily dropped dramatically and other ways of raising money have supplanted the majors' huge budgets, with the added benefit that artists own their own product now.

And nobody's really buying CD's or physical product (except vinyl, which I would argue is more cleverly used as a marketing product), so the traditional distribution networks seem kind of ever less relevant. But, man, there's nothing quite like a shit-load of money and a clever marketing team to get the word out, and put CD's (or at least the artwork) in front of likely customers.

And if you include meaningful tour support in the marketing budget you really have a chance to reach some people in ways that we just can't do when we stick our stuff in storage and hop in the van for 6 weeks of dusty floor-beds, cheap tacos, and shoving small change in the fuel tank.

As great as it is, the democratized noise-floor of the modern all-access Internet music world is rackety, and sometimes it seems like the only way to get yourself heard above the cacophony is with a louder, clearer message targeted at the people who are most prone to liking it, and the majors still may have some use in for that.

Isaac: I remembered Simon Cowell from American Idol talking about the “it” Factor that makes a musician/band stand out. What do you think is your “it” factor that makes you stand out from others in the music business?

Allan: Intensity and integrity, and a certain bear-ish ironic charm. We lovingly labored over every layer, every note on this record and we thing the intensity and integrity of care that went into it puts the music on par with some of the best stuff we've ever heard, and we think our audiences will intuitively appreciate that when they're exposed to it.

Isaac: Why should music fans listen to your music? Describe what they are going to get when they listen to Bonedome?

Allan: One reviewer said that Thinktankubator "rewards the listener with every successive listen", and that's exactly what we were trying to make happen. At first blush, we want the songs to have a quirky hook—something that seems immediately familiar but different, maybe even a little weird.

After that, we think they'll discover that we've drawn on sonic influences that they recognize from every decade and many genres, without concerning ourselves at all with wearing "cool" influences on our sleeves, and this makes the individual discovery of those influences that much more genuine and meaningful for us and the listeners.

People have discovered, in fact, influences that we didn't even recognize when we were making the recordings.

Finally, we think people will find some truths in the lyrics. Almost all my lyrics are about relationships, and almost all relationships evolve or end; we've found that, no matter how dark or how funny, these things do resonate with people, and with any luck we're saying something they may have already been thinking, but hadn't yet found an expression for.

Isaac: Briefly describe your humble beginnings that led you to where you are at musically now.

Allan: My friends and I started a cover band in 7th grade—I chose bass because my best friend already played guitar, and I didn't want to compete with him. We had the requisite rock 'n' roll fantasies of sex, drugs and fame even if we didn't quite know yet what we'd do with any of those things.

We also had parallel (and slightly contradictory) notions of punk-rockness, but we didn't let that slow us down. After a few years and a few school dances, we kinda lost interest in playing covers—it obviously wasn’t the path to stardom—and started writing our own stuff.

We persisted with that band throughout high-school, eventually playing our first "real" club gigs, through college when we were on breaks, and for a couple of years after that. When that band finally broke up, our youthful fantasies never fulfilled, I went on to play bass in a series of bands, including one or two that had some major-label interest/activity, writing songs (some of which are on Thinktankubator) all along.

Really since the end of that teenage dream, each new project has represented a sort of re-reconciliation of expectations in the context of reality, a real ongoing lesson. One of the great things about the lesson is that all of it led up to making a record that we're really proud of, and I expect the next one will be even better.

Isaac: You have some strong iconic influences. Of these influences, which artist/band do you relate to the most and why?

Allan: Many of my musical influences are icons in their respective genres, but I confess it would be a little ridiculous and vain to pretend that I relate to them. I don't personally know David Bowie or Peter Murphy or John Lennon or Paul Weller or Ray Davies or Jack White or Angus Young or Buddy Holly, and I don't know if I could relate to them individually or not, despite how much I obviously connect with their music.

I really relate to more to my friends and former band-leaders who have literally been in the same place as me, and managed to do so much that I respect and admire. I played with Kim Pendleton Bonner (of The Backsliders) and Paul Quigg in Vibrolux, with Bill Longhorse in Sixty-Six, with Johnathan Lacey in Prince Jellyfish, with Barry Kooda in his Combo, with Trey Johson in S.P.A.M, and many other musical visionaries. They've all exert the strongest influences on me—some of Bonedome's songs were written as if they were part of the repertoire of those bands, years after they no longer even exist.

Isaac: Do you feel that Indie music gets the respect it deserves? Why or why not?

Allan: Sure. But I'm not sure what metric we'd use for "respect." The mainstream marketplace shows it's "respect" for things by co-opting it, which usually kills the independent spirit that made it great in the first place—might not want too much of that kind of respect. Local and national "indie" communities show their respect (or lack thereof) by making it exclusive and/or elite, and in doing so they run the risk again of marginalizing some otherwise great stuff that may not seem as fashionable—ironically this is a lot like a small version of the mainstream music marketplace.

The best place to find respect for independent music is within the participants themselves - the artists, the venues, the fans, and things like college radio. If all those participants can respect themselves and their own choices then they can make/leave room for an inclusive and mutually supportive scene, without ever becoming "indie fundamentalists".

Isaac: If you could change one thing about the music business, what would it be and why?

Allan: The "business" part of the music business will always be a little fucked up—after all it's business, not music, and we don't get into music to be business people. I don't know how to do it, but I wish music could do a better job of representing its true value to the listeners, because if I think we could figure out a way to do that we might all get paid something closer to a living wage.

Also, when I think of all the great music that has never been heard—songs by all my former bands and all my friends' former bands, multiplied by thousands of cities and over a few decades, especially before the Internet—I wish there was some way to connect that music with listeners who never got the chance to fall in love with it.

Isaac: Do you think in the near future that DIY artists/bands will be the norm and big record companies will be very limited?

Allan: Yeah. I think those roles are constantly evolving. But the big record companies will continue to be there, just like now, wherever there appear to be big profits to make for big shareholders. In some ways we could look at this as a blessing, because it keeps all kinds of music resources (engineers, studios, manufacturers, mastering houses) paying the rent so that they can still occasionally work on projects they love—kind of an accidental, indirect patronage system.

Isaac: What type of feedbacks have you been receiving about your music from fans and music critics?

Allan: We're really happy to hear from listeners that they're picking up on almost everything we put into the music and some other stuff too. As a whole, they're really good at finding the diverse influences, including some we didn't even know about.

Some of the songs, even the ostensibly ridiculous ones like Slow Jesus Xing, seem to be resonating with people. And since we labored long and lovingly over the recording process, we're pretty happy to hear that people can appreciate the craft we put into it—they think it sounds really good.

It's nice to hear all that stuff from people you don't know, and who aren't obliged to tell you things they think you want to hear.

Isaac: If you knew that you would never gain fame and fortune with what you are doing now, would you continue to make music? Explain.

Allan: I can't say I'll never gain fame and fortune through music, but I know it's ever less likely, and I seem to care even less. Every passing year, band, and gig has taught us that fame and fortune may not be terribly realistic expectations, and it has never stopped us before. This is something that drives you from deep down, and is almost impossible to stop.

Isaac: How do you handle negative feedback or negative energy about your music?

Allan: We've loved the negative feedback we've gotten so far. Some of it has been spot-on, however subjective. Some of it has been totally absurd. In almost all cases, the negativity has revealed far more about the owner of the negativity than about Bonedome or Thinktankubator. And those rare shitty comments, ironically, have invariably served to galvanize support from our friends and fans in response.

In general, we think negative feedback is better than no feedback at all, and sometimes we can learn something from it, so we say bring it on!

Isaac: What role do your family and friends play in the equation of your pursuant of a music career?

Allan: My friends and my music have always been inextricably intertwined. In fact, it could be argued that my entire social life is organized around whatever band(s). I'm in at any given time, and this has been true since I was 12 years old. My mom has always been generously supportive, and has helped fill in the financial gaps during some of the roughest times, so she's probably got a permanent credit as an "executive producer."

I've been gigging a lot with my niece Tiger Darrow, who released 2 records this year—her senior year in high school. I don't know who's influencing who more—it's so refreshing to play with someone who hasn't yet built-up so many rules we make to protect ourselves from the hard realities of the music biz. We're as mutually supportive as we can possibly be. Plus she's easy to buy gifts for, since she likes/needs a lot of the same goodies I need.

And things would be quite a bit different if my wife and I didn't have a 2-income household, and if she didn't have the patience of whatever mythical classical god is famous for patience...

Isaac: What is the best site/s that you can be found on the Internet?

Allan: There are a million sites out there for bands, and we try to participate in as many of them as we can. MySpace used to be great, but it has (following in the steps of Friendster) become so saturated with blinky flashy spammy porny crap that it's almost completely unusable.

SonicBids has our EPK. BandCamp seems really cool, and we've only just started using it. There are lots of small, niche-y social networking sites where you can put up stuff. Lots of bands seem to use Reverb Nation. Many of the Internet streaming radio stations like Pandora and Jango as well as smaller ones have pages for their bands, and we're on almost all of them.

CDBaby has been very helpful to us, and it's a great place to get all kinds of otherwise hard to find local physical product.

But you want to go where people are, and right now the people are on Facebook by the billions, so that's were we concentrate a lot of our efforts. We really like the options for interacting with people there:http://www.facebook.com/bonedome .

Isaac: The floor is yours; final words…..

Allan: I just want to encourage everyone to do whatever they can to support local music, and that includes spending some money. Most shows around Dallas small venues have a $5-$10 cover these days, and every dollar you spend has a multiplier effect: the bands get some of it, the sound dude gets some of it, and the bars get to see the bands and the fans as an economic force.

And when you go to the show, buy a drink or two, and tip the bartender decently—you're not just spending money on a beer, you're helping to make the whole thing more viable and making everyone a little happier and more hopeful about what we're all trying to do for each other.

If your friends have a CD out, buy one. If you know another friend would like the music, but won't (or can't) buy a CD, buy one for them. Buy stuff online. Buy a T-shirts. Most sales, even the smallest ones, leave a trail these days, and the ability to sell things reflects well on the bands, predisposing people to give them better gigs, and take everything more seriously.

Artists have always poured a huge amount of money into plying their art, and we're not going to stop. But it would make everything easier for everyone if the audience would step up and let a few dollars pay represent how important music really is to them, and we know how important it really is to them, because artists are invariably listeners, too. - Junior's Cave - Isaac Davis, Jr.

Bonedome: It's not every local band that has a following so loyal as these Dallas rockers. They're heavy, but not so heavy they forgo melodic sensibility; thinkers, but not egg-headed; and really good musicians, but never too polished for their own good (or ours). They'll be joined onstage by a few special guest musicians, and The Repenters also perform.
Fri., Mar. 4 at 10pm; prices TBA
City Tavern, 1402 Main St.; 214-745-1402 - AOL City's Best - Scott Straley

Dense, intense and evocative at the same time, although the crossing is by night and with regular stops at melancholy.

Style: Rock
Adjectives: Dense, Deep, Contemplative, Reflective, Evocative
Compositions: (Very) Good
Sound: Personal (But With Influences)
Negative: Nothing
Grade: 8,6/10 - InannaNaked.Com

4. Bonedome – Thinktankubator. Journeyman Dallas alt-rock muso Allan Hayslip (Vibrolux, Prince Jellyfish, Rock Star Karaoke) steps up to the plate for his first outing as frontman and sole writer and knocks one out of the park, evoking (to these feedback-scorched ears) the spirit of Big D’s best-ever contribution to brainy pop-rock, obscuro genius Reggie Rueffer’s bands Spot and the Hochimen. Melodic yet aggressive, with the smartest lyrics I’ve heard in a long time – maybe since the Hochimen’s Tierra del Gato a few years back, in fact. - Ken Shimamoto - I-94 Blog - 2010 Top Ten

Almost like an indie prog rock version of slipknot, the many members of Bonedome blast competition in their genre out of the water. You could argue with that many musicians at once it has the potential to become a mash of noise but not this, this is anything but.

Every new listen of the album envelops you into deeper and deeper layers of intricate sound, subtleties you had previously missed become clear and delicate murmurs that seemed to escape you will suddenly present themselves on the forth or even fifth time around. There’s a complicated quality to the songs, it’s only on the second or third time of listening that you really hear them. There’s a subtle bitterness there, a cleverly displayed darkness, lyrics that seem to expose all the hate of the world but are served with a smile, rather like a poisoned apple; take a bite of that apple and you realise the insides aren’t so nice. They have a somewhat smooth, lovely surface and a dark underbelly that once you're involved will shock you.

The music is something else; trying to say who they sound like is hard because, the more you listen the more bands come to mind. The best way to describe them would be if David Bowie, Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, Kings of Leon, Gary Numan, The Beatles, Pink Floyd and The Who got together and had the best jam session in the world, then wrote an album based on that jam session, whilst taking influence from all the best times they’ve had alongside all the times spent in the gutter. Yeah, I know, I listened to it countless times now and I cant dissect it anymore than that. It’s simply way to complex and captivating to pull apart, with the various members weaving elaborate guitars and sumptuous vocal harmonies alongside drums, percussion, and keyboards. It is too detailed to take to pieces and would be like trying to find a single threads journey through a tapestry, it just can’t be done.

Thinktankubator is an album with a serious personality disorder, it makes you want to laugh and cry with each change of a song. Some of the tracks seem to be more upbeat and more fun in the way of lyrical content. For example, the lyrics of “Girl One” really make me smile “Girl eleven only lives in my head, (she is my headcase) / Girl number twelve lives only in porn". Also the opening line of “Slow Jesus Xing” is awesome: “He ain’t heavy / he’s fat and American but the girls still love him.” But they are in stark contrast to the darker lyrics of “Easy”: “No lullaby can stop me / down will come baby / her lover and all, and into the cradle we all will fall / it’s easy to kill a man, easy from where I stand.”

And the heart wrenching lyrics of “Custody Lullaby”, simply put, is despondent words wrapped in an elegant blanket of soft musical genius. It just makes you want to sob. It’s like a rose, graceful and painful. It’s so simple, so clever and is almost what’s left unsaid that makes it. The implications, as well as the in your face message makes for a haunting track disguised as something cute. “You didn’t exactly get to choose / your momma, your daddy, or who to lose / you didn’t exactly get your say / what baggage you’ll carry for the rest of your days”

In essence, Thinktankubator is someone’s feelings bottled and sold to the masses.Parts of it are so dark you’re almost emotionally tired after listening to it, but despite that fact it’s still exceptionally poetic and sublime; it’s like being confronted by a psychopath with a pretty face, and it doesn't really get any better than that. Thinktankubator has this phenomenal epic musical intelligence and, for a band to be able to so seamlessly get to such levels of darkness whilst their product is so beautifully put it together, just makes you wonder how you ever existed without it in your music collection before. Thinktankubator is already in with the music I listen to regularly and I don’t see that changing ever. - AltSounds.Com

An exquisite Texas chainsaw massacre of guitar-driven intelligent rock and roll...tight, grinding band with razor sharp lyrics delivered in smart harmony - in a genre of their own. - Quil Lawrence, NPR Kabul reporter via iTunes Ping

8. "Sandman", Bonedome
About a month ago, I met Allan Hayslip at Double-Wide. We chatted for awhile, and then he gave me a copy of his band's CD, Thinktankubator. I asked him to describe the sound of this project, and he told me he had heard several different comparisons, and he wasn't sure which ones were accurate. He mentioned comparison to Bowie, and the comparison seems fair for his vocals, but not so much in the melodies. I can't pinpoint the exact influences, but I will say that it strikes me as sounding like early 90's, pre Nirvana alternative. George Gimarc would've put this band on a Tales From the Edge CD in a heartbeat. - Ghost Of Blind Lemon - Chris Mueller

(Thinktankubator) Alan Hayslip's multi layered, grand, neo-prog gets all up inside you...I guess you could call him a prog-tologist! - Rocktober Reviews

Instantly impressive stuff. The folks in Bonedome are yet another band incorporating the ideas and sounds of the 1980s into their music. We can hear traces of a wide range of folks while spinning this disc...but specific artists that come to mind include David Bowie, The Psychedelic Furs, and Peter Murphy. The tracks on this album feature layers upon layers upon layers of overdubs and lots of instruments and effects. But fortunately the vocal melodies don't get lost in the process, as the songs themselves take center stage here. We have to admit that at times the super thick production is a bit much...but considering how strong the melodies are that seems like a teeny tiny thing to whine about. Twelve cool heady tracks including "Sandman," "Girl One," "Easy," and "Custody Lullabye." Top pick. - BabySue.com

"Bonedome is the moody, prog-pop brainchild of Dallas-based?multi-instrumentalist Allan Hayslip. "Houston, we have a little problem,"?intones Hayslip, introducing the dense psychedelia of "I Can Lose You."?The song suggests Peter Murphy standing in for John Lennon on "Tomorrow?Never Knows." Other songs, like "Easy" and "Red Flags R Trouble" sound?like XTC's lush and melancholy pop winning a tug-of-war with Tool's?doom-laden math-rock. Hayslip's website names him "a lyricist whose?playful way with words seems constantly at war with his massive grudge?against the world." Witty and angry, "Slow Jesus Xing" is a prime example?of this. "He ain't heavy, he's fat and American," profanes Hayslip. The?pessimistic "Fade Away" is a darkly comic, crunchy pop answer song to Buddy Holly's classic "Not Fade Away." - The Big Takeover (print only)

The strain of ‘70s power-pop that got assimilated by ‘80s gothy New Wave, especially by bands on the other side of the big pond, is in full force on this quirky release. Allan Hayslip, the singer/songwriter/producer here, might have been born 30 years too late to cash in on the original dark pop craze, but better late than never. Like the Silverlake pop explosion of the ‘00s, I give a thumbs up to good sounds even if they aren’t all that original.


SOUNDS LIKE:
XTC, BAUHAUS, CURE - Pirate Cat Radio

Bonedome is the brainchild of Texas musician Allan Hayslip and have recently released their first album Thinktankubator. Besides adding his considerable vocal talents, Hayslip plays guitars and bass and has help from a few other musicians including Gerald Iragorri on drums and percussion and Ed McMahon on guitars.

Having never heard of this band before I was pleasantly surprised after listening to Thinktankubator. The music sits directly under the alternative umbrella with occasional references to classic and progressive rock. This is a guitar based album but you will not find any solo extravaganzas here. Instead listen for edgy guitar textures with off kilter melodies and spacious rhythms. Oh sure there is the odd solo here and there but that is not what this band is about. Complimenting the guitar sound are the vocals of Hayslip. He has a deep rich baritone which is more than a little bit similar to David Bowie which is not a bad thing in my book. Other points of reference would be 80s-90s Iggy Pop, XTC, Nirvana and The Beatles, especially regarding the layered vocal harmonies which are a staple of this disc.

Some of my favourites include "I Can Loose You", featuring an edgy guitar rhythms and vocals that harkens back to XTC and the richly textured "Easy" with its sparse guitar arrangement and Hayslip's excellent vocals paying homage to Bowie's musical stylings. Other notables include the late 70s retro rock of "Steven" reminiscent of The Cars' debut and the album ending "Custody Lullabye" with its pretty guitar melody and excellent layered vocals that took me back to The Beatles circa 1969. Perhaps the proggiest song is "Red Flags R Trouble" demonstrating quirky guitar rhythms and more great vocals.

I should point out there are some weaker moments here like the somewhat pedestrian rock of "Better" but overall this is a strong alternative rock album with plenty of hooks and one that fans of the genre should check out.


Track Listing:
1. Sandman
2. Fade Away
3. Girl One
4. Slow Jesus Xing
5. Eraser
6. I Can Lose You
7. Easy
8. Red Flags R Trouble
9. The Other One
10. Steven
11. Better
12. Custody Lullabye - Sea Of Tranquility - Jon Neudorf

This interesting multi-instrumentalist is a seasoned music industry player, and thus has quite a cool take on how he expresses himself in his music. Sometimes dark, sometimes bright, Allan Hayslip's take on the Texan music scene is far from country and more towards progressive rock.


We as listeners can tell that this guy is older and as such, is channeling his influences more than many younger musicians today. We like his creativity and lack of fear in approaching his compositions and his catchy lyrics.


We're hoping he's totally that cool guy playing at the dive bar around the corner, full of friends and fellow musicians. His sense of humor and his talented playing are quite enjoyable. If not for that, how awesome is the name Bonedome!? Songs we recommend you listen to: "Steven" and "Custody Lullabye."" - NewBandDaily.Com

Texan alternative group Bonedome released “Thinktankubator.” The name is incredibly indica- tive of what the album becomes. It seems to be an out-of-the-ordinary musical experience intended to force a new perspective on its listeners. The Dallas-based group was formed under the leadership of Allan Hayslip, who intended the group “as the nom-de-rock for songs and perfor- mances that have never quite fit in his other bands,” according to the website.

Hayslip fills a lot of roles for the group, includ- ing “vocals, bass guitar, guitars, tracking engineer, composer” and “producer.” He is joined by Gerald Iragorri on drums and percussion, Edward McMa- hon on guitar, Paul Williams on guitar and keys, Colin Boyd on guitar, Jonathan Lacey on guitars and composition, Gregg Prickett on guitar and Chad Stockslager on keys for the album. Stewart Bennett served as the tracking manager.

The music is a strange combination between Frightened Rabbit, Green Day and Dishwalla, with the same eccentric, esoteric and cynical lyrics stan- dard in 90’s alternative rock. If you listen to the “90’s lunch” on 106.5 and want a fresh band for a similar sound, Bonedome is for you.

“Slow Jesus Xing” epitomizes this sound, with slow, drawn out riffs that, on the surface, mask a critique on American, religious culture. The lyr- ics are akin to the style found in Porno for Pyros’ “Pets” and the Butthole Surfers’ “Pepper.” In “Eraser,” Hayslip croons to losing a woman he’s abused.

Whether he’s looking at an outside situation ironically or being brutally, apathetically honest about a situation of his own, he turns the normal breakup song on its head. This is a consistent pat- tern. Bonedome turns normal sounding alternative music into an interesting play on the expected; He turns normalcy into abnormality.

The most brilliant of any of the songs on the album in this way is “Custody Lullaby.” What’s normally considered a way to comfort an unhappy
child, a song that serves to remind the world is in- deed a safe place, becomes an apology for a child stuck between an unfair situation that punishes the least responsible.

Not all of the songs impress, however. “I Can Lose You” is not only generic musically, but so are the lyrics. Nothing complex in the way of musical style or lyrics are offered to the listener, with sim- ple lyrics like “if losing me now makes you better somehow, all right” and “the signals we’re used to aren’t very strong.”

It seems like they’re making an analogy be- tween a failing relationship and losing signals at NASA (“Houston, we have a little problem”), but David Bowie and Pink Floyd did that already. It’s either that, or they’re referencing the city of Hous- ton, making the song even more simple. With songs like “Custody Lullaby” and “Slow Jesus Xing,” I’m disappointed, because it’s clear they’re more clever than that.

It’s obvious that’s what the group was going for. The album is self-described as “a product of a mu- sical omnivore” whose lyrical style is “dark, indeed
often chilling” because of “his massive grudge against the world,” according to the website. All of that is evident in everything the band does.

If that was the point, they’ve more than suc- ceeded. The band also proclaimed to encourage on their website, promising that “it’s an album that rewards each further listening, as layers of guitars reveal hidden melodies and a previously unnoticed line reveals itself to be a subtly clever bit of vin- dictiveness.” On the second and third play of the album, this is precisely what happened.

The album’s better songs will make you thing, and you’ll skip past the less impressive ones on your playlist. Let’s be honest, though.

What album doesn’t have songs that displease someone somewhere, even if the listener actively likes the band? If you want a throwback to the shockingly blatancy of 90’s grunge and alternative, check them out. You won’t regret it if you do. - The University TImes - Ann Simpson

Figuring out Bonedome requires a bit of perspective. The band is not so much a “band,” or even a “project,” in the traditional sense. It’s…well, let’s put it this way: you know how, when Neil Young recorded “After the Gold Rush,” he sequestered an 18-year-old Nils Lofgren away from his guitar and stuck him instead behind the piano, an instrument with which he had almost zero experience? And it ended up actually working? Like, really really well? Yeah — imagine a whole band being put through that.



So that’s Bonedome. Strictly speaking, it’s the brainchild of 41-year-old Dallas resident Allan Hayslip, and a collective that amasses an indie-prog roundtable of his closest friends as sidemen. The only reason I bring up Hayslip’s age is to illustrate the tone of the album: at this point in his life, the man has developed the kind of dead-serious-by-proxy sarcasm that can only come from directly channeling middle-aged ennui — check the catchy, loping smirk of “Girl One” for proof. If Hayslip had recorded that song 20 years ago, it would likely have been overshadowed by a sneering sense of youthful entitlement, and would NOT have worked.

But it does work. The whole album works. Considering that all of these dudes have long been entrenched in one of the country’s most formidable and eclectic musical hotbeds, it’s no exaggeration to say that “Thinktankubator” sounds like, well, everything. If pressed, I’d say that the first three Elvis Costello albums and the more rockin’ varieties of New Wave are decent points of reference, but really… you just need to hear this thing for yourself. Just be sure to check your preconceptions at the door. - Metro Spirit (Augusta, GA) - Josh Ruffin

It's not everyday that boys from Texas crank out an album with vocals and minor chords akin to make-up donning David Bowie. Yet Thinktankubator has pulled it off — and fairly well, I might add.

The disc starts strong with a rocking “Sandman” tune and morphs into a more Bowie-sounding collection — that is, until it changes to multi-instrumentals, which occasionally smack of Pink Floyd, and then becomes repetitious.

The band calls it layered, with a symphonic approach.

Oddly enough, fresh tunes intermingle with monotonous ones. “Sandman” asserts, from its first lines, “I have hereby resolved not to do anything I don't want to do, excepting of course, when I find I have to.”

It's too bad they didn't feel they had to push a bit harder with some of the lyrics, particularly in last two songs, “Better” and “Custody Lullabye.” (I mean, certainly, with an intriguing title like “Custody Lullabye,” they could've come up with something more original than “go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep little baby.”)

That said, Bonedome does contain some solid musicianship and great lines like “He ain't heavy; he's fat and American, but the girls still love him; he don't get around so good, rounding up the chosen few really takes it out of you; slow down, Jesus is crossing. - Summit Daily News - Kimberly Nicoletti

Hailing from Dallas, the nine-piece Bonedome brings a prog-rock sound to its debut album, Thinktankubator (Summer Break). Prior to Bonedome, singer/songwriter Allan Hayslip worked within the Dallas music scene and was an orchestral violinist and chorister as a schoolboy. All of that hard work and classical training is reflected in Bonedome’s musical stylings. “Steven,” the first single off Thinktankubator, is surprising, to say the least. Hayslip’s vocals are like those of a young Bowie, but the music has an appeal similar to the Hives. The overall effect is somewhat orchestral in scope with a lot of drive and a truly sublime guitar tone. - Magnet Magazine

03:49: JEFF: And of course we have "Critique Of The Week"

03:51 RICK: "Critique Of the Week"

03:52 JEFF: Who's up for "Critique Of The Week" this week?

03:54 RICK: We're gonna hear from a band called---I love the name of this band 'Bonedome'.

03:58 JEFF: Bonedome. Breaking In's got Bonedome.

04:01 RICK: We do. We're gonna hear from...

04:03 JEFF: ,,,and I've got some ointment that'll take that away. [ha ha] We're gonna be right back after these laughs.

---------------------------------

31:43 JEFF: Eric we're going to have to take a break. Um. And when we come back, though, we're gonna do a little feature that we do every week on Breaking In called Critique Of The Week, where we actually critique a song, a piece of music sent in by one of our loyal listeners. Would you like to hang on and sorta participate with us on that?

32:01 ERIC: Absolutely.

32:02 JEFF: Alright. Well stick around 'til after the break. You are listening to Breaking In with Rick Shoemaker and Jeff Maxwell on KFWB News Talk 980. We'll be right back after these great words.

---------------------------------

33:22 JEFF: Welcome back to Breaking In with Rick Shoemaker and Jeff Maxwell. Yeah. And um...

[Rick and Jeff go back-and-forth about Jeff's technical diffiuculty]

34:40 RICK: Alright. Well Eric, here is where we are. We're at a segment of the show called Critique Of The Week, and this is where we listen to a piece of music sent in by a Breaking In listener and my partner Jeff Maxwell and myself, we critique it on the air. This one of the first times we have an industry rep like yourself joining us for this. And you're gonna hear this piece of music for the first time, just like us. And we're gonna ask you what you think about it. And perhaps it might be something for Music Dealers.

35:11 ERIC: Perhaps. Let's take a listen. We'll see...

35:13 [cue beginning of "Steven"]

35:14 RICK: Alright. Well this was sent in to us from a lady named Kaytea. The name of this band is called Bonedome, and the name of this track is called "Steven." And we're listening to it right now...

36:04 JEFF: and welcome back to Breaking In, and Bonedome...

36:10 RICK: Bonedome. Alright I think we've got plenty of Bonedome. Thank you very much...

36:15 JEFF You know you can never have enough Bonedome as far as I'm concerned.

36:19 RICK: Eric did you get a chance to listen?

36:22: ERIC I did. I didn't get to hear all that well, but I definitely did hear a little bit. Um. Would you like my take as far as licensing goes, or what direction would you like me to go in?

36:35 RICK: Well, let's... I'll tell you what, let's start with...Let's just review the song together here a little bit. Jeff Maxwell do you have thoughts about this, 'cause...

36:41 JEFF Well I would, but I apologize to all the listeners bacause I was having a little technical difficulty--apparently I pushed a button I shouldn't have pushed, and it was giving me a big echo in my headphones, so... I was on another planet, Nevertheless, I'll leave it up to you learned gentleman to talk about that song.

36:59 RICK: Alright, let me just start by saying before we get into Eric's review... This song kinda starts with a bass solo, and there's an old joke in the music business about, uh, bass solos and drum solos, and I won't get into it but, not the best way to start a song and... For me...and then the opening lyrics are about a midget on an island with a speech impediment... I think I know what he's talking about, but, I basically got kind of offended by the whole opening of that song. Uh, Eric, from what you heard, what do you think the licensing possibilities are for Bonedome's "Steven"?

37:31 ERIC: Okay I will tell you that I do think, you know, in all honesty that there could be a home for that somewhere. I think they definitely hurt their chances of licensing just because of the lyrical content. But that, you know, that's a touchy subject because you don't want to, you know, stifle people's creativity because they're worrying about making money off the song, if it's really about the art. But, definitely the lyrics will prevent it from being in any ads or network television. The only place that song has a chance of landing is in a movie somewhere, and if it's a very specific scene where an interesting, different kind of weird song like that would be appreciated.

38:12 RICK: Right. And I'm sure if Bonedome is listening, their defense is gonna be "well we wrote it, and we weren't thinking about licensing opportunities" but, as I advise every writer I ever talk to: do not narrow-focus--always think in the most broadest terms [sic] that you can. Your point is, is, is dead-on, Eric, and uh, ah, I appreciate you taking the time to spend with us and listen to, to Bonedome.

38:40 ERIC: Absolutely. It's been a pleasure and I appreciate you guys...

38:41 RICK: Steven

38:41 ERIC: ...having me on.

38:43 RICK Alright. I'd like you to, if you could, give out your vitals one more time for Music Dealers because this is a great opportunity for Bonedome and any other band that's listening to possibly get something going.

38:55 ERIC: The website is just musicdealers-dot-com. M-U-S-I-C-D-E-A-L-E-R-S-dot-com. And an email that you could reach someone immediately is info@musicdealers.com.

39:10 [begin fade up of more of Bonedome' "Steven"]

39:10 JEFF: Eric, thank you very much for being a guest on Breaking In with Rick Shoemaker and Jeff Maxwell. Uh, we look forward to hearing all the success you have with your company. And, uh, we're gonna be right back with the News Muse after these words.

39:25 ERIC: Thank you. - Breaking In With Rick And Jeff - KFWB NEWS TALK 980

Allan Hayslip really kicks it up a notch on his latest band effort Bonedome. Tightly produced rock songs with the powerhouse rhythm section of Gerald Iragorri and Hayslip himself keeps this record pumping hard throughout with great rock grooves and solid songwriting. From the Beatles-influenced jams of I CAN LOSE YOU to the 80ís influenced pop rock styles of STEVEN these guys outdid themselves this time with a very strong record worthy of attention. - Aaron Comess (producer, solo artist, drummer for The Spin Doctors) - (via email)

"4. Bonedome – Thinktankubator. Journeyman Dallas alt-rock muso Allan Hayslip (Vibrolux, Prince Jellyfish, Rock Star Karaoke) steps up to the plate for his first outing as frontman and sole writer and knocks one out of the park, evoking (to these feedback-scorched ears) the spirit of Big D’s best-ever contribution to brainy pop-rock, obscuro genius Reggie Rueffer’s bands Spot and the Hochimen. Melodic yet aggressive, with the smartest lyrics I’ve heard in a long time – maybe since the Hochimen’s Tierra del Gato a few years back, in fact." from I-94 Bar Elder Statesman Ken Shimamoto. - I94Bar.com - Ken Shimamoto

Here is a curious new release. Judging from the artwork, the new CD by Bonedome resembles a 1990s industrial genre cover, something from one of those heavier acts such as Frontline Assembly. The music that spills forth from your speakers or headphones, however, is quite different from what was expected by the packaging, save for the fast and furious rock and roll songwriting which often sonically resembles characteristic recordings from that decade.Thinktankubator is an immediate rock album that is loud, but also concentrates on melody and is thus up-tempo enough to obscure the grunge sound of the guitar driven songs.

Most of the tracks are succinct numbers that donít waste time on build-ups or changes in dynamics. ìStevenî begins with some distorted bass akin to something from Pixiesí Doolittle. The electric guitar playing is rather different though. It sounds more like mid-period Smashing Pumpkins. ìEraserî is an acoustic ballad that recalls The Bends era Radiohead in certain ways. ìFade Awayî sounds like it would be the single as it comes across as a crossbreed between The Afghan Whigs and The Rolling Stones.

Bonedome has spent what sounds like a lot of time perfecting the sound inThinktankubator. The production is polished and clear without sounding overproduced and the songs are thick with crisp musical resonance and often multi-tracked vocals. If the marriage between 1990s influences and current recording technology is what they were going for, then this album has hit its target straight on. - Three Imaginary Girls - Andrew Boe

Bonedome's Thinktankubator reminds me of some of my favorite records without ever seeming derivative.  Of course it rocks.  And of course Allan Hayslip's strong baritone does a great job of selling the songs.  The real surprise is the quality of the songs - the deft melodies and smart lyrics.  Thinktankubator is an outstanding accomplishment. - Rhett Miller (Old 97's) (via email)

Bonedome is one of those bands whose music contains a little bit of everything rock related. On their debut effort, the group has elements of classic rock, progressive rock, and alternative rock (among others) all mixed into one cohesive sound. While this may sound as though it is going to result in a very disjointed effort, the bandís debut effort Thinktankubator is actually a very layered effort that will have listeners analyzing every single song just to find out what influences it pulls from. And although there are some slightly weaker tracks, the overall album is very strong and should keep people interested.

Despite the fact that almost every song on Thinktankubator has a slightly different sound from the last all of the tracks fit in with one another and nothing is ever thrown at the listener that seems unnatural or out of place.
Bonedome clearly is interested in always offering something new, as one minute they might be playing old school progressive rock while the next they are playing more modern alternative rock. Thereís certainly a lot to like, as the instrumentalists put a lot of emphasis on creating catchy melodic riffs that make all of their different styles to stick with listeners.
Admittedly there is a song or two where the sounds just kind of fade into the background and donít grab your attention, but as a whole this album does stand out.

Vocalist Allan Hayslip sounds as though he was ripped out of the halls of classic rock as his singing is very reminiscent of a number of rock vocalists from the late 60ís and early 70ís. Hayslip is backed up by some of the other musicians and this is often used to create some very cool harmonies. What is even more impressive is how he is able to adapt his style to fit all of the different instrumental arrangements without sounding awkward. Despite the fact that his voice gives Bonedome a slight retro vibe, this doesnít make the group sound dated at all and actually helps them out.

Thinktankubator is a very interesting release that manages to mix retro and modern rock together to create material that should attract listeners both young and old. There is still some room for the band to grow and continue to expand on all of their various instrumental styles but as of right now theyíre still memorable. Look for Bonedome to be in a lot more places in the next few years as they have lots of potential. - Chris Dahlberg - Cosmo Gaming

I get a lot of CDs that come across my desk and rarely does one grab my attention like this new gem of a masterpiece called Bonedome. Thinktankubator is twelve songs of pure genius. Allan Hayslip is the mastermind behind Bonedome but has a horde of talent supporting him including Gerald Iragorri on drums, Edward McMahon on guitars and a slew of other flair that makes up this unique machine called Bonedome.

Thinktankubator is one of those CDs best listened to or experienced and is nearly impossible to describe accurately. One thing is noticeable is Hayslipís vocals which are reminiscent of David Bowie with a good mix of Michael Knott (L.S.U. & The Aunt Betties). The lyrical content is a mixture of dark humor and angst. This is most noticeable in songs like ìGirl Oneî, ìEraserî and ìCustody Lullabyeî. It is a CD that has schizophrenia as one moment it is making you laugh and the next lulls you into the darkness of the night. It is truly an emotional CD.

Overall Bonedomeís Thinktankubator is an independent CD that is worthy of checking out. If you are a fan of Michael Knott, David Bowie, Love and Rockets, Elvis CostelloÖ Ah heck if you like music that is reminiscent of the 90ís alternative music movement then this is one to give a listen. Go on over to www.thinktanlubator.com; check out some samples and see if this one is up your alley. - Colossal Pop - Jeff Holton

Charged and deliriously ebullient lead-on "sandman" bursts in fully technicolor and cleverly collated spectacle. It rockets stratosphere-ward, only to shower/bombard reeling listeners with neon tonal sparks. Shards of felt hues jut from surrounding sod. Moods, paces, and inclinations whirl past like scattershot kaleidoscopic emissaries from plateaus uncharted yet universal. Progression with steely ambition, gold pot.

Recommended "Sandman, " "Steven" - Damnation Dance Party - DC Larson

10. "Sandman", Bonedome
Speaking of the Tales from the Edge series, I previously said that George Gimarc would have put this track on one of the CDs in a heartbeat. While it's unfair of me to put words in Mr. Gimarc's mouth, the song definitely captures the early 90's alternative rock sound extremely well, and would have fit so comfortably along side such classic local bands as The Spin, Pop Poppins, Moon Festival, Bat Mastersons, and so forth. Bonedome will undoubtedly perform this song Friday night at LaGrange for the CD release show of Thinktankubator. - Ghost Of Blind Lemon - Chris Mueller

Allan Hayslip's Bonedome jump on the front bumper and bend it damn near to the street on 'Thinktankubator.' With a hat tip to the young Bowie and a full-body check on the Davies brothers, this lad tells a layered story of loss and loco. The slightly off-center arrangements, on-target guitars, and well-built vocals keep it spinning. (And the production? Paulie [Lovatt] would be most pleased.) - J.M. "Matt" Barker - HTS Recordings, Little Rock AR (via email)

BONEDOME ist das musikalische Alter Ego von Allan Hayslip (Gitarre, Bass, Gesang), der zusammen mit anderen Musikern aus Dallas, TX seine Vision des perfekten Rockalbums umgesetzt hat. Musikalisch l‰sst sich ÑThinktankubator" schwer kategorisieren: Es ist ein zeitloses Werk, dessen Einfl¸sse von an David Bowie (Official) erinnernden Songs ¸ber Prog-Rockiges bis hin zu Daniel Ashs (ex-Bauhaus ) Love & Rockets reicht, die Ende der Achtziger in den USA richtig gro? waren, in Deutschland aber maximal ein Geheimtip. Teilweise sehr mainstreamig, ohne damit bˆse aufzufallen, und somit ein durchaus interessantes, aber auch irgendwie zwischen den St¸hlen h‰ngendes Album. - OX Magaine (Germany) - Joachim Hiller

Your cd is really cool! I was surprised that it had so much cool Bowie-style sound and really liked the variety of songs on it. Very moody, rock, interesting, complicated, but like reading a book. The album cover and name of the "band" made me think it was going to be different than it was. Cool!!! Good job dude. - Lisa Loeb (via email)

La voix du chanteur Allan Hayslip rappelle beaucoup celle de Peter Murphy. C’est la première chose que vous remarquerez à l’écoute de Bonedome. Ce n’est pas une mauvaise chose, loin de là, mais c’est notable. Pour le reste, Thinktankubator propose une bonne brochette de chansons inspirée par le rock alternatif intelligent des années 80 (Murphy époque Holy Smoke, XTC, Love and Rockets), vu à travers le prisme du indie rock d’aujourd’hui. On me l’a présenté comme de l’indie-prog, ce que je rejette: les chansons sont courtes, simples, sans développements instrumentaux. Cela dit, elle sont intelligemment arrangées, bien mûries, et elles ont de l’ambition. Les fans de Murphy y trouveront quelque chose, j’en suis sûr. “Girl One” est particulièrement réussie.

[The voice of singer Allan Hayslip is strongly reminiscent of Peter Murphy. It’s the first thing you’ll notice when listening to Bonedome. It’s not a bad thing, of course, but it leaps at you. That aside, Thinktankubator offers a good selection of songs inspired by the intelligent alternative rock of the ‘80s (Holy Smoke-era Peter Murphy, XTC, Love and Rockets), seen through the prism of today’s indie rock. The album was introduced to me as “indie-prog” but that’s just wrong: the songs are short, simple, without instrumental developments. That said, they are intelligently arranged, matured, and they show ambition. Fans of Murphy will find something to like in here, as did I. “Girl One” is a particularly good song.] - Monsieur Délire - François Couture

Bonedome is the nom de rock for what is essentially a one man band, the brainchild of Allan Hayslip, bassist, guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, engineer and producer. As happens frequently with other projects driven by one artist’s vision, Bonedome’s Thinktankubator is for all intents and purposes unclassifiable. Certainly, it’s not chamber music or hip-hop, but what is it? The critic mind boggles at the prospect of labeling. As the portmanteau album title suggests, this music is a mash-up of several things. Is it layered, indie prog-rock? Music David Bowie might have written if he’d been a Texan with anger issues? Love & Rockets covering the most vicious songs Elvis Costello ever wrote? Bob Mould leading a more restrained and catchier ELO?

…Well. It doesn’t matter. Comparisons are useful only so far as they help recall various associations, and there’s no end of sonic association on this wall of sound. “Fade Away,” the second track, twists the Buddy Holly classic around, into a pessimistic snarl: “I’m gonna tell you how it cannot be / How you and I won’t make history.” Hayslip, whose rich, self-assured vocals really do evoke shades of Bowie at times, writes his own “Space Oddity” in “I Can Lose You.” Resignation in the face of a doomed relationship wrapped in an allegory of a lost astronaut, with wicked wordplay at work: “If radio silence sounds like sweet violence / Or a one-word sentence to a singular penance, all right.” It’s very dark, very tough stuff for those for whom such a description rings all too true.

Hayslip shuffles in similarly random references throughout the album: Echo and the Bunnymen, Herve Villechaize, Neil Sedaka, Elvis, and more. Thinktankubator is the product of a musical omnivore, a multi-instrumentalist with a symphonic approach, and a lyricist whose playful way with words (“one finger follows the next / Just like pretext follows sex”) seems constantly at war with his massive grudge against the world. Dark, indeed often chilling, it’s an album that rewards each further listening, as layers of guitars reveal hidden melodies and a previously unnoticed line reveals itself to be a subtly clever bit of vindictiveness. - Nick Leggatt

Thinktankubator indie rock sound abounds with references to a ton of late 80s/early 90s alternative and new wave artists. Allan Hayslip's vocals are in the baritone range and remind me at times of David Bowie. Opener Sandman has a strong feeling of 80s British new wave, somewhat along the wavelength of Big Country, and expansive sort of freedom as the song drifts across summery fields of rock. Up next is Fade Away with a nod towards They Might be Giants and with a rockier attitude. Whereas Girl One lingers in a meandering path of sound explosions and brings to mind a bit of the Pixies. Total Bowie worship opens the track I Can Lose You. The song makes an unbreakable alloy of the Bowie influence and strong hints of Echo and The Bunymen. More Echo and the Bunnyman accents are woven into the fabric of the dark and dreamy, Easy. Steven takes on the slow building comedy of Weezer but twists it into a darker animal altogether. After the rowdy rock of Better, the album screeches to halt as it shifts gears with the finale track, Custody Lullaby. The song is dreamy and sorrowful, though a little awkward in the vocal department. On Thinktankubator, Bonedome sprinkles in influences into their own personal blender and grinds them into catchy, moody indie rock that feel familiar and elusive all at once. So if dark new-wave/pop/alternative/indie-rock sounds like it could nestle inside your brain then Bonedome is certainly an interesting journey. - Nocturnal Cult Webzine - Brad Smith

Say it loud, say it proud, I’m bald and I rock. Such is the veteran musician’s credo needed to name your new project Bonedome. Head honcho Allan Hayslip has played through numerous bands from his home base in Dallas. You may suspect a scattershot approach with the first two songs ranging from Metallica (“Sandman”) to Buddy Holly (“Fade Away.”) Relax. These originals most closely resemble early Police and Elvis Costello, slowed down and injected with a little Texan vitriol for color. Mash-up “think tank” and either “masturbator” or “incubator” depending on the quality of the resulting revelations and you get “Thinktankubator.” Bonedome happily delivers both, with a wink and a snarl. - Pop Rocket Press

It’s 2010 and the grunge Beatles have arrived. This in the form of Allan Hayslip’s quartet and theirinviting confluence of 60's song-sense and 90's sound-styling.
Not afraid of melodies-- or harmonies for that matter, as a large part of the lyrics is delivered by two or more voices, Bonedome maintains an astounding balance of driving energy, choice musical accents,and patient catchiness. Unapologetic and confident, due perhaps in part to Hayslip’s decades of musicianship, from boys’
choir, to symphony orchestra, to Texas rock band. - Swamplands Record-Statesman - Andres Solar

Don’t Tell Allan Hayslip That You Love Him

Bonedone releases a bitch slap of an album with Thinktankubator

“You should be glad that words were the worst things
I ever put in your mouth”
-Better by Bonedome on Thinktankubator

Steeped in the dark reality of dysfunctional and co-dependent relationships – celebrating and reveling in the more painful aspects of love, the giving of oneself to another and the violence therein – Allan Hayslip, long time Dallas, Texas sideman in bands such as Vibrolux, Sixty-Six, Prince Jellyfish, and currently performing in Rock Star Karaoke, pushes himself to the fore with his band Bonedome and their newly released album, Thinktankubator, which Hayslip describes as a “collection of relationship songs clothed in quirky, sad, introspective, and self-deprecating timbers.”
The album opens with the song Sandman, a muddied rocker thick with overdubbed harmonies, Julian Cope overtures, and a sneer, in which Hayslip openly declares his inability to keep any sort of resolve in his decisions in the face of another’s desire. This abdication of power, according to many a paisley sweater wearing prescription writing psychiatrist today, leads to feelings of inferiority and, more to the point in this case, anger, resentment, and mistrust of others. It is in this pot that most of Thinktankubator stews.
Songs like Eraser, a slower-tempoed harmonic showpiece in which Hayslip really lets slip his chorister training; Easy, a heavy, crescendo pointing arm waver; and Better, a real multi-layered stand out rocker, all play with the idea of betrayal and the hurt it begets. There is an undertone of violence in these songs, most obviously in Easy, whose chorus of “It’s easy to kill a man / It’s easy from where I stand” is almost a distraction from the strangulation fantasy in which Hayslip revels in the aftermath of his lover’s seeming affair. Hayslip himself is an imposing figure, large by any standards, which only adds to the ominous nature of these songs.
Yet Hayslip also seems to indicate that he is just as capable of betrayal as anyone else. Girl One, a song I was singing to myself while folding laundry hours after listening to it; The Other One, an obvious nod to the Pixies (actually Hayslip and Black Francis look like they could have been separated at birth) that veers off on its own to become comfortable in its authentic groove; and Red Flags R Trouble, another of the album’s songs that stuck with me long after I last listened to it, all seem to inform the listener that Hayslip can give just as good as he can get in this cage match of heartbreak and betrayal.
The nakedness of these songs is almost brutal at times. This may be a result of the fact that Hayslip has lived through some real heartache in his life and has, through true introspection, been able to channel this destruction into an act of creation – or it may be a by-product of the fact that most of the basic tracking for the album was done in an non air conditioned control room in the heat of the Dallas summer, allowing Hayslip to engineer naked, a fact he seems to take great glee in revealing.
The song I Can Lose You takes the idea of abandonment further and moves it into an interesting discussion about the nature of friendship and the sacrifices of that relationship, with Hayslip playing the convenient martyr in this complex song heavily indebted to David Bowie’s Space Oddity and Ashes to Ashes.
While the album’s core rests in these themes of betrayal, abandonment, and violence, there are a couple of notable exceptions. The first is Steven, which has one of the most honest choruses (chori??) since Lou Reed openly declared that he wanted to be black. In Steven, Hayslip shouts “I write songs to give good interviews / I do drugs to give good interviews,” underlying his understanding that nothing sells today like a good back-story and an even heavier horse or monkey on your back.
The other exception is my favorite song on the album, Fade Away, a stumpy, thuddy collision between Buddy Holly and AC/DC. Here, Hayslip turns on its head the classic poet pick-up line: “Baby, if you let me lick on you awhile, I’ll write a poem about it and make you immortal.” Fade Away seems to celebrate the transience of existence and notoriety -- that he and his lover are “just two drops in the sea” who will eventually just fade from history. “And it’s okay,” according to Hayslip. While seemingly celebratory of this sort of carpe diem, the song’s ending refrain of “I’m gonna tell you” returns the listener to the ominous tone of the rest of the album, adding another layer of complexity to the message of the song.
While the album does misfire a couple of times, most notably on Slow Jesus Xing and the cringing choral drudgery of Custody Lullaby, the great majority of it is filled with tight, well-orchestrated songs that highlight Hayslip’s song writing ability and his Peter Murphy ispired vocals. The album bodes well for Hayslip’s continued emergence as a front man and it is certainly worth a listen, especially if you’re driving away from your lover’s home for the last time ever, gripping the steering wheel white-knuckled tight, all gacked up on anger and betrayal, and looking for something to say.
-Daniel Elkin - Daniel Elkin - Curmudgeon In Training

Bonedome is the nom de roque of Allan Hayslip, a Dallas muso who’s been at it since ’84 with more bands than you can shake a stick at, including SPAM, Crackbox, Vibrolux, Prince Jellyfish, Rock Star Karaoke, and the Darren Kozelsky Band. I got to know him around the cleavage of the decades, when he was playing bass in a coupla bands with some once-and-future Nervebreakers: punk covers in the Punk Rock Dinosaurs and spaghetti western/surf-rock with the Big Guns. Thinktankubator is his first venture into frontman/sole writer territory, and it’s a stunning surprise.

Moody, quirky, melodic-but-aggressive pop rock is the order of the day here – the kind of thing an XTC fan might have dreamt up. The proximate models I’m hearing are Cincinnati’s beloved Psychodots (albeit less guitar-solo-centric), or closer to home, Goodwin and especially Reggie Rueffer’s brainiac-rawk apotheoses Spot and the Hochimen.

No surprise, then, to learn that HCM guitarist and ex-UNT jazzcat Ed McMahon – who will come to your house and personally award a giant prize of fretwork that alternately rings, grinds, and skronks – is all over this shiny silver disc; there are no coincidences. It’s hard to say which antecedent the vocal blend here -- in a lower register that it’s rare to hear in this kind of music – reminds me of more: Chad Rueffer in Spot, David Bowie on Lodger, or maybe the Psychedelic Furs' Richard Butler. Whatevah, it's a win.

What matters more 'n anything with this sort of thing is the songs, and Bonedome’s got 'em. Clever wordplay is one of Hayslip's strengths, starting with his opening declaration, "I hereby resolve not to do anything I don't want to do / Excepting of course when I have to" (from "Sandman"). "Fade Away" negates Buddy Holly with its opening line ("I'm going to tell you how it cannot be"), while "Slow Jesus Xing" perversely evokes the Hollies ("He ain't heavy, he's fat and American") while sounding for all the world like an outtake from the Spot album.

The vocal similarity to Bowie comes to the fore in "I Can Lose You," Hayslip's take on the "Space Oddity" story, replete with jangling 12-string, while "Easy" sounds exactly like the alt-rock murder ballad it is (unlike, say, Died Pretty's "Sweetheart," which sounded like a love song). Bonedome saves the best for last, with "Steven," which casts a jaundiced eye on rock 'n' roll self-destructives, and the self-explanatory, deeply felt "Custody Lullabye," where he drops the cleverness and just says what he has to say over a lush bed of vocal harmonies. Records like thisun only come along every few years or so, and when they do, they're always welcome.
- Ken Shimamoto - The Stash Dauber