Mutha's Day Out
Encyclopedia
Mutha's Day Out was an alternative metal band formed in November 1991 from the town of Batesville, Arkansas
. The band consisted of: Mikal Moore (vocals), Brice Stephens (vocals), Chuck Schaaf (guitar), Jeff Morgan (bass), and Rodney Moffitt (drums). They released one album, My Soul is Wet, in 1993 for Chrysalis Records
before breaking up.
, with three vocalists (Mikal, Brice Stephens, and Randy). The name was thought up by Brice and came from a daycare center in Batesville that kids could go to for pre-school in Methodist churches. Jeff Morgan had just been kicked out of a band he and Chuck Schaaf were in when Mikal asked him to be in a band that would sound like "Faith No More
, Beastie Boys, and Ozzy Osbourne
." The band was rounded out by Rodney Moffitt, who played drums, and Lance Branstetter, who played guitar, with Chuck serving as his guitar tech. When the band first came together, Lance was 21 years old, Mikal was 20 years old, Brice was 18 years old, Chuck was 17 years old, Rodney was 17 years old, and Jeff was 15 years old.
In April 1992, the band traveled to Memphis, Tennessee
in search of a cheap recording studio. They found the studio they were looking for belonging to recording engineers Doug Easley and Davis McCain
. After producing Mutha's Day Out's first demo in studio, which consisted of 15 tracks, Doug booked the band to play in the Crossroads Music Festival that week. In the same performance, Mutha's Day Out's first, a representative from Chrysalis Records
, Karen DuMont (who currently still works with Mikal), was present to see and sign another band. After seeing MDO's performance, she offered them a chance to go to the studio the next day, while receiving a record contract as well.
, King's X
, Overkill
, Sugartooth
, and the Bullet Boys. Jeff, at one point during the tour, was in a leg brace having dislocated his knee the night before at a club gig in Birmingham, Alabama, but was still insistent on playing. During their tour in the United States, they stayed in cheap hotels to lower the cost of the record company's tour bill.
In the European leg of their tour, however, the band gained great notoriety, especially in France. There are many diehard fans to this day that are concentrated around Paris. Their only live record (EP) was recorded in the Virgin Megastore in Paris to a strong audience of loyal fans and contains 5 tracks.
). In the aftermath, Mikal obtained the rights to Mutha's Day Out and still owns the rights to this day.
in 10 days.
and recently got married. Jeff Morgan returned to Batesville and plays drums for a band called Rwake
; he is married with one son. Chuck Schaaf played in Rwake until 2002 and has since then formed a band called Deadbird in Fayetteville, Arkansas
with his brother, Phillip; he is a newlywed. Lance Branstetter is married and owns his own recording studio in Batesville; he also helps run a large farming operation owned by his family. Randy Cross is currently a loan officer at a bank in Batesville and teaching banking and accounting classes at a local college. Rodney Moffitt returned to Batesville and worked for the city mowing yards, and now works for a contractor hanging dry wall.
Batesville, Arkansas
Batesville is the county seat and largest city of Independence County, Arkansas, United States, 80 miles northeast of Little Rock, the state capital. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city was 9,556...
. The band consisted of: Mikal Moore (vocals), Brice Stephens (vocals), Chuck Schaaf (guitar), Jeff Morgan (bass), and Rodney Moffitt (drums). They released one album, My Soul is Wet, in 1993 for Chrysalis Records
Chrysalis Records
Chrysalis Records was a British record label that was created in 1969. The name was both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis...
before breaking up.
Early days (1991-1992)
Mikal Moore (born Mikal Morehead) and Randy Cross conceived Mutha's Day Out through influence of the Beastie BoysBeastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....
, with three vocalists (Mikal, Brice Stephens, and Randy). The name was thought up by Brice and came from a daycare center in Batesville that kids could go to for pre-school in Methodist churches. Jeff Morgan had just been kicked out of a band he and Chuck Schaaf were in when Mikal asked him to be in a band that would sound like "Faith No More
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
, Beastie Boys, and Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
." The band was rounded out by Rodney Moffitt, who played drums, and Lance Branstetter, who played guitar, with Chuck serving as his guitar tech. When the band first came together, Lance was 21 years old, Mikal was 20 years old, Brice was 18 years old, Chuck was 17 years old, Rodney was 17 years old, and Jeff was 15 years old.
In April 1992, the band traveled to Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
in search of a cheap recording studio. They found the studio they were looking for belonging to recording engineers Doug Easley and Davis McCain
Easley McCain Recording
Easley McCain Recording is an American recording studio, based in Memphis, Tennessee, notable for recording musicians such as Tav Falco's Panther Burns, Grifters, Pavement, Sonic Youth, Come, White Stripes, Townes Van Zandt, Pezz, Jeff Buckley, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Guided by Voices, Lydia...
. After producing Mutha's Day Out's first demo in studio, which consisted of 15 tracks, Doug booked the band to play in the Crossroads Music Festival that week. In the same performance, Mutha's Day Out's first, a representative from Chrysalis Records
Chrysalis Records
Chrysalis Records was a British record label that was created in 1969. The name was both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis...
, Karen DuMont (who currently still works with Mikal), was present to see and sign another band. After seeing MDO's performance, she offered them a chance to go to the studio the next day, while receiving a record contract as well.
My Soul is Wet (1993)
They went to the studio to record their only album, My Soul is Wet. Randy Cross left the band the day after they got the record label and Lance was kicked out a week afterwards; the band replaced Lance with Chuck. Halfway through the production of the album, Greenforth Pham, a Vietnamese boy who was a close friend of Mikal and Brice's, committed suicide, and thus the album was dedicated in his memory ("Green"). The album was finished and then released on October 19, 1993. Chrysalis released four singles from the album: "Locked", "My Soul is Wet", "Green" and "What U See/We All Bleed Red". The first three singles were accompanied by music videos, with "Locked" being used on a segment of Beavis and Butthead in the episode "Crisis Line".Tour (1994)
Mutha's Day Out toured the United States and Europe from late 1993 to late 1994. They were opening for such bands as JackylJackyl
Jackyl is an American rock band formed in 1990. Their sound has been described as hard rock, heavy metal and Southern metal.The band is probably best-known for its song "The Lumberjack", which features a chainsaw solo by lead singer Jesse James Dupree. On the recording, Dupree alternately revs the...
, King's X
King's X
King's X is an American hard rock band that combines progressive metal, funk and soul with vocal arrangements influenced by gospel, blues, and British Invasion rock groups. The band's lyrics are largely based on the members' struggles with religion and self-acceptance...
, Overkill
Overkill (band)
Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey. They have gone through many line-up changes, with singer Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and bassist D.D. Verni remaining from the original lineup. Along with Anthrax , the band is one of the most successful East Coast thrash metal...
, Sugartooth
Sugartooth
Sugartooth was an alternative rock band that was formed in the early 1990s.Marc Hutner and Josh Blum formed the group after meeting each other on the California band circuit . They worked with two different drummers over time...
, and the Bullet Boys. Jeff, at one point during the tour, was in a leg brace having dislocated his knee the night before at a club gig in Birmingham, Alabama, but was still insistent on playing. During their tour in the United States, they stayed in cheap hotels to lower the cost of the record company's tour bill.
In the European leg of their tour, however, the band gained great notoriety, especially in France. There are many diehard fans to this day that are concentrated around Paris. Their only live record (EP) was recorded in the Virgin Megastore in Paris to a strong audience of loyal fans and contains 5 tracks.
Breakup (1994)
Mikal left the band in September 1994, but this had been discussed and dealt with already with Chrysalis before the album even came out. He was obligated to do the tour, however, and couldn't leave until that part of the deal was fulfilled. After Mikal left, the band decided to call it quits rather than continue forward with a new singer. The main reason the band broke up is that they were all going in different directions musically and it ripped apart the band. Had the band stayed together, Chuck and Jeff would have done most of the writing and gone in a much darker direction (with a sound similar to KreatorKreator
Kreator is a thrash metal band from Essen, Germany, formed in 1978, but formalized in 1982 under the name Tormentor. They originally performed a speed metal style with Venom influences. Their style of music is similar to their compatriots Destruction and Sodom, the other two big German thrash metal...
). In the aftermath, Mikal obtained the rights to Mutha's Day Out and still owns the rights to this day.
Mortal Kombat (1995)
Mutha's Day Out appeared in the 1995 movie Mortal Kombat during Scene 2 while Sonya searches for Kano amongst a large crowd moshing to them. They received a call on tour and were asked to take a few days to go to Hollywood and film their scene. Their song, "What U See", is featured on the soundtrack to Mortal Kombat. It is looped three times to form a four minute song. The looped song also features a short cowbell intro and the removal of the foul language the song had originally contained, although some copies of the soundtrack do have the profanity included. The movie grossed over 100 million dollars and the soundtrack went platinumRIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
in 10 days.
Today
Mikal Moore is married with three daughters and is the lead vocalist for the Christian rock band Gazer. Brice Stephens is currently living in Orlando, FloridaOrlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
and recently got married. Jeff Morgan returned to Batesville and plays drums for a band called Rwake
Rwake
Rwake is a Southern sludge metal band from Little Rock, Arkansas, USA, that began as a jamming four-piece in 1996. The band was originally called Wake. The first Wake show was March 15 1997 in Batesville, Arkansas at the Landers Theater....
; he is married with one son. Chuck Schaaf played in Rwake until 2002 and has since then formed a band called Deadbird in Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville is the county seat of Washington County, and the third largest city in Arkansas. The city is centrally located within the county and is home to the University of Arkansas. Fayetteville is also deep in the Boston Mountains, a subset of The Ozarks...
with his brother, Phillip; he is a newlywed. Lance Branstetter is married and owns his own recording studio in Batesville; he also helps run a large farming operation owned by his family. Randy Cross is currently a loan officer at a bank in Batesville and teaching banking and accounting classes at a local college. Rodney Moffitt returned to Batesville and worked for the city mowing yards, and now works for a contractor hanging dry wall.
My Soul is Wet (1993)
- Produced by Eli Ball at The Warehouse Studio in Memphis, TennesseeMemphis, TennesseeMemphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
- Released October 19, 1993
- "Locked" (Moore, Moffitt) - 3:54
- "My Soul is Wet" (Moore, Moffitt, Schaaf, Morgan, Stephens) - 2:48
- "Green" (Moore, Schaaf) - 4:46
- "What U See/We All Bleed Red" (Moore, Branstetter) - 5:54
- "Dry Water" (Moore, Branstetter) - 3:41
- "Ding Ding Man" (Stephens) - 0:43
- "Get a Clue" (Moore, Moffitt, Morgan) - 2:45
- "Blank Page" (Moore, Stephens, Morgan, Branstetter) - 4:21
- "Memories Fade" (Moore, Schaaf, Morgan) - 6:46
- "Breakfast First Please" (Moore, Branstetter) - 2:55
- "Wait for Me" (Moore, Schaaf) - 3:56
- "Ugly" (Moore, Morgan) - 3:40
External links
- Official Mutha's Day Out Tribute Site
- Unofficial Mutha's Day Out Website
- Mutha's Day Out Fanpage
- Mutha's Day Out MySpace Profile
- Mutha's Day Out PureVolume Page
- Mutha's Day Out Artist Profile
- Mutha's Day Out Lyrics
- Mutha's Day Out HM Breakdown Magazine Review (In German, Translate to Read)
- Most Played MDO Songs and MDO Fan List