ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 21, 1997 TAG: 9702210032
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MADELYN ROSENBERG STAFF WRITER
So you wanna be a rock 'n' roll star?
This is how it works: You start by jamming in your basement, or maybe a storage shed. You get a club gig and, if you're lucky, a second one. You get a few fans.
You support your habit and the amp that's on the fritz with a day job - maybe something in the restaurant industry. When you tour, you sleep on people's floors.
That stage can last years, or forever.
Or ... you could get a lot of fans and start making a little money.
You could quit your day job and, this time when you tour, you could splurge on hotel rooms.
That's the stage Agents of Good Roots, a Virginia band with two Roanoke members, is at now.
Of course, says singer and guitarist Andrew Winn, "They're cheap hotels."
Oh, and one more thing could happen at this stage: you could sign a record contract with RCA.
Agents of Good Roots did that just last week.
Though the band - Winn and Stewart Myers, both graduates of Patrick Henry High School, J.C. Kuhl and Brian Jones - did its share of celebrating, Winn was low-key about the signing, which took place in New York where the band was playing a show at the Wetlands.
"We'll see what happens," he said. "We trust the A&R guy. We're just gonna keep touring and playing gigs and see what happens. We'll just do our own thing. You're put on a major label and something changes, but I don't know what. Maybe nothing."
The contract calls for a two-record deal, Winn said, which is standard. He didn't disclose other terms of the agreement.
A number of bands - even the majority - who sign with record labels "fall through the cracks and you never hear from them again," said Bruce Flohr, RCA's vice president of A&R band artist development. "Nine times out of 10, the reason is they don't have what Agents of Good Roots has, and that's a loyal following prior to the label discovering the band."
The band members have worked since 1992 when they started playing together, slowly building a reputation and a following for their blend of funk, jazz and rock, Flohr said. "That gives the band credibility, a better work ethic, and it keeps the pressure off. Once a major gets involved, the tendency is to want everything to happen tomorrow."
He said he expects the band to continue to tour and write new songs, to record in October, and to release its major label debut in early 1998.
Meanwhile, the band is putting out its second self-produced CD, "Straightaround" due in stores on Tuesday. (Locally, look for it at The Record Exchange).
The band's last CD, "Where'd You Get that Vibe?" sold more than 7,000 copies, said Chris Tetzeli, whose company, Red Light, manages Agents, the Dave Matthews Band and Gibb Droll, all from Virginia.
Like Dave Matthews, Agents of Good Roots found strong grass-roots support in Virginia and on the road. Good thing - the band plays five nights a week year-round.
"We do really well in Roanoke, Charlottesville, Richmond, Atlanta, Washington, Norfolk, Raleigh (N.C), Greenville (N.C.) ..." Winn said.
A thousand people signed up for the band's e-mail mailing list soon after the band moved to the World Wide Web, Tetzeli said. Much of the site is fan-driven.
"There's a discussion page where people who should probably be doing schoolwork get on and talk to each other about Agents," he said. "It's pretty exciting to see."
Recently, the discussion has centered on tapes available for trade, the general coolness of the band, and how annoying it will be for longtime fans when the group gets famous.
RCA's Flohr first heard Agents play three years ago, Winn said. "He flew out to see us at the Bayou in D.C. We didn't play very well and he was sort of turned off. But he gave us another shot."
Said Flohr: "What I saw that night was a desire to get better and after that time I went out and saw many shows, I'd fly out every couple of months, and I saw constant improvement. That's what kept me interested."
He called the contract "a very healthy major label record contract."
The band's official World Wide Web site is at www.agentsofgoodroots.com.
LENGTH: Medium: 81 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Agents of Good Roots sign an RCA recording contract.by CNB