started by guitarist
dale meiners, this band was formed "specifically" to play with wesley willis. band members would vary, but regulars were wesley willis (vocals), dale meiners (guitar/
bass), and pat bernard (lead guitar). they only seem to have put out one album on a label, called
spookydisharmoniousconflicthellride. it was released in 1996.
many people believed that this band "
exploited" wesley, taking advantage of his
savant status in order to make money off him. others argue that wesley deserves every chance to make it big in the music industry, and that his psychological
ailments should not be used to keep him from reaching a wider audience.
the wesley willis fiasco toured with bands
sublime and
rocket from the crypt (whose album title "scream,
dracula, scream!" was inspired from a song by wesley willis). wesley has no
short-term memory, and had to carry a
notebook onstage with him in order to shout his lyrics to the crowd.
the band broke up in
ohio while on
tour, due to conflicts between wesley's solo
keyboard shows and the band's shows. also, being on the road all the time took a lot out of wesley, and the
voices in his head tend to get worse when he is
stressed and/or tired.
after the
breakup,
lead guitarist pat bernard sold his equipment and moved to
lake tahoe, where he
died a
month later of
hypothermia and subsequent
drowning. i have no idea where anyone else ended up.